Light in the Darkness - a SWTOR Story
by Zeev Gerden
Summary: Resurgent Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic are building up power, ready to continue their ancient grudge and start a new war. Amongst the chaos, one figure has risen to leave a mark upon the Galaxy. Many roads has this individual walked, many names and titles were given... among all, one name is most renowned - Kallig Imperious, the Kind Sith
1. Prologue - Slavery

Slavery was not a future my family envisioned for me, but like it often happens, planning ahead in life while not having control of the circumstances needed for your plans to succeed will guarantee they won't come to fruition. This case is no exception to the rule - the war in all its infamy made sure all my parents' plans for a career in a farming industry went down the Sarlacc pit and then some. It could be worse though, no matter how ironic such a phrase sounds - forced to work as a slave for the Sith Empire of all the organisations, fed and clothed only to the bare minimum, constantly watching people around you break from exhaustions and be dispatched of, either on the spot or publicly to keep some of the more rebellious souls among us in check... how exactly could a situation like this get worse? Well, for one, I could be dead. And two, there were two reasons I wasn't in as a bad of a position as many around me.

My hard work and perseverance would be the first reason: since I was thrown into a half-built or half-demolished shack, can't say for sure which one it was to this day, a simple and clear thought got stuck in my head - I don't like my current position. This thought helped me to negate the aftershock from the recent events - my family, along with a few of other people I knew, were slaughtered before my very eyes, our house looted then razed, and then I got put into a transport shuttle with several people and transported to a new world I never knew existed. As far as I was concerned, all my life until this moment ceased to exist... nay, that is putting it too kindly: it didn't cease to exist, I could see its traces on my body - the bracelet my mother gave me as a good luck charm, the pants my younger sister bought me for my 18th birthday as a joke but they were quite good so I kept them, the shoes that were once worn by my father and I have always tried to keep them clean out of respect and love to him... my previous life has by all intents and purposes ended, but these signs that told me it was there and it will never be again just kept hammering me in. It was almost like a phantom limb to me - not here anymore, yet the mind just refuses to acknowledge its absence, and it hurts all the more for it.

Luckily for me, once we have arrived at the place, the first thing we were ordered to do was to discard all of our clothes and accessories. Ironic - the guards wanted for us to feel even worse by forcing us to give away whatever remained of our memories, but this has most definitely helped me to come to terms with my new reality much faster. Had I kept my memories of my loss so close to me, I doubt I would have survived past first week. Now, lying among at least fifty or so "roommates", having severed my visible ties to the past and having my new goal supress the emotional pain, I have decided to do everything in my power to better my position.

The first three months were rather monotone - every morning we would be gathered on a makeshift square, where another low-rank Sith Lord would tell us how insignificant our lives now were and how grateful we should be to the Sith Empire, the Emperor and this particular Sith Lord speaking to us right now for allowing us a second chance at life. Sometimes the Sith Masters would show up to gaze at the process, though it was a rarity. Having never met a Sith or familiarised myself with their ideology before becoming a slave, I thought that the reason these Sith Lords were so angry at us all the time was because their Masters were as harsh and angry to them, and so they tried to release some steam on us. In my head it made sense, it was a typical food chain situation - If you live in a close vicinity to a Sand Demon and cannot move place, there is nothing you can do but to endure the Sand Demon... which means that the Womp Rats would be your stress reliever most of the time.

After this lecture, we would go to work. Often it was some heavy labour, mining the rocks and bringing the minerals to the refinery, or helping to prepare the land for some architectural projects. During these labours I tried to be the best worker - I would mine as much ore as I could see and would learn to strike the stone at the right place, so as to keep as much of a feebler mineral in one piece as possible; I would then remove all the stone from the minerals quickly and efficiently. When working the land, I made sure to use my knowledge about the agriculture and architecture my father taught me. Along with praise from the overseers, these three months have taught me many valuable lessons - be quiet unless asked, show respect to the person you are addressing and make sure that this respect is sincere when speaking to a Sith, and only make jokes when given permission to, though this rule applied only to me. This permission was usually loudly indicated by "Entertain us, slave!". While not a great joker, the Sith and Imperial troops that I came into contact would find my humour acceptable for their taste. The only explanation I could find as to why I was humouring my Masters by anecdotes and not by screams of pain was my bravery, or maybe stupidity.

About three months after I've started my new life as a slave, I was summoned to the quarters of one of the Sith Lords, a middle-aged Sith Pureblood, for "entertainment". Considering that few returned alive from such a trip, I got scared - all my plans to improve my position were about to go downhill! However, as I walked towards the living room of the Sith Lord, I have come to terms with two things - one, if I die I get to see my family again. And two, if I leave a good impression on the Sith, it might help me to improve my position. As such, this was a first win-win situation I've had in a while! With that in mind, I have walked into the Sith's chamber.

She didn't react to the door being opened and closed, instead staring at the view of the landscape out of her window. Not that it was surprising to me - Sith could channel lightning out of their fingertips, wield lightsabers with deadly precision and be above the level of anyone I knew of. This gave them an air of superiority when talking to anyone in the Sith military... and to us slaves they gave little to no consideration.

I gave a bow and called to her - "I am yours to command My Lord". This wasn't in any way mockery or insincerity - I awed and respected the power that the Sith wielded, and I was indeed hers to command. Besides, I was trying to make as good of an impression as possible.

"Slave... tell me why I shouldn't kill you".

Such a dreadful sentence, both in structure and implication... if I partially wasn't prepared to die, this question would have thrown me off balance.

I spoke, still having my back bent and with my eyes on the floor: "My life is yours to command, My Lord. My opinion is insignificant".

This response and the variations upon it were often used by other slaves when talking to the soldiers and the Sith stationed with us. Upon hearing it, they would grunt in approval, give us a hit or a Lightning Shock and walk away. It was your safe pass out of every dangerous situation. Though not this time.

"Look me in the eyes, slave! Why are you wasting my time saying obvious things? You are a slave, your opinion was never significant... no, it doesn't exist at all. Slaves do not get to have opinions. It seems that you are too stupid to understand even that... I should disintegrate on the spot but I will give you a second chance - why shouldn't I kill you?"

Aside from an order that was almost spat out, she talked in a calm, monotone voice, almost as if reading a lecture, though it was more of a calm before the storm. While she was talking, I realised that I should come up with a reason my life holds any significance. Alas any of my successes on the working field would not impress her - there are countless other slaves down there, and it doesn't matter if I am the best of them all. That meant I had to proof that I would be useful to her. I quickly glanced around the room, trying to find anything I could use as information to my advantage... and found a small target practice with a holo-image of a Hutt on it. That meant this Sith wasn't a big fan of the Hutts... perhaps I could make up a joke about them. As soon as she finished talking and fixed her gaze upon me, I took a breath and, with my voice even, asked: "What does a Hutt enjoy more than gaining weight and wealth?"

A rather sheepish look was her only response. I decided not to wait for her attempts to guess the answer and followed up almost immediately: "Getting its ego stroked"

For a moment the sheepish look stayed... then the Sith smiled. To my relief it wasn't a cruel smile but a genuine one.

"That would be the first time a slave tried to make an attempt at humour in my presence... though this attempt at humour was only a fraction of a hair away from being horrible, slave. Surely you can better?"

Even though the words didn't sound good, her actions spoke differently - I was still alive and she did enjoy the joke, so much so that she wanted to hear another one. Alas I couldn't think of another Hutt joke, and had to yet again improvise, except this time I didn't have a clue as to what joke she would find good. That meant that the Jawa joke was off limits and I didn't know that many others. Seeing that I was silent, the Sith Lord casually lifted her hand to one of her hair strands... except for a moment, a sparkle of lightning danced between her fingers... that's it! Sith were big fans of violence! And there was a rather violent hobby my friends from other farms often engaged in...

"What is shooting at a target called? Target practice. What is shooting at a pack of Womp Rats called? Proper target practice".

The wording was a bit rusty, but in my defense, I was somewhat agitated and didn't exactly have much time to refine it. Though it didn't matter - the Sith started snickering, and then even laughing. I decided not to join but rather keep a smile on my face, simultaneously wondering if my jokes were actually that good or her sense of humour was that bad. Then she stopped laughing and gazed at me again, though this time it was clear she no longer wished to test me.

"Curious. Few slaves were able to speak up more than once in my presence when put in your position, and even fewer twice before I put them down. Yet not only did you speak three times to me, you have also provided me with entertainment that I didn't expect, but have quite enjoyed... I saw your reaction to my little demonstration of power, slave, and it seems you got inspired by it, a powerful joke after a display of power. For this joke, slave, is the epitome of power - like these Womp Rats who are nothing but filth to be shot at by the powerful, so are the Sith deciding the fate of those around us. The Hutt joke however... I do not understand where you could have gotten the inspiration from. Explain".

Deciding that explaining my actual thought process behind the Womp Rat joke would not help me improve my situation for the better, I decided to answer her question by pointing at the holo-image at her target practice.

"Impressive, most impressive. You absorbed the surroundings and used them to your advantage. I wouldn't praise anyone for that normally, but slaves usually tend to whimper about their worthless existence or produce various waste products. You, on the other hand... Where others were consumed by fear, you stood strong. Where others were blind, you saw my passions and exploited them. Now, slave, you have earned your life for today, you may leave my chambers and continue with your existence... or you could try to rise from the filth. However, for that to happen, I want to test your wit: your first joke was intended for me. It exploited my hatred for the Hutts and mocked their pathetic traditions. Your second joke was intended for the Sith. It called to our code, to our right to rule over the unworthy and decide their fate. But now I wonder... were these two jokes calculated masterstrokes, or lucky shots? So, slave, I want you to tell me a joke that, in your opinion, is completely unfitting to tell in a presence of a Sith. Show me what a bad joke is".

To be completely honest, most of her words sounded like huge leaps in logic to me. Adding that with my lack of knowledge of the Sith ideology I was left in a rather bad spot. I could just leave her now... but then she could just summon me again and kill me next day, and this here was my ticket to a better life... I couldn't do a bad joke for the Sith, but I most definitely could do a bad joke. Ironic how I initially decided not to use it and now it was my best gambling chip.

"Two Jawas walk under a bar"

Silence followed, the Sith seemed to wait for a continuation. Once she realised there would be none, she thought on the sentence. Then, as it hit her, her initial chuckle was replaced by a look of extreme distaste directed towards me. She opened her mouth, about to reprimand me, but the closed it. Then she sat in the chair in the corner of the room, her expression full of thought.

As for me, at this point I was sure she was devising the slowest way of ending my life. Damn! Why did I tell that joke to her! I really should have-

My thoughts were interrupted by a sound of clapping. I slowly looked towards the corner of the room the sound was coming from. The Sith Lord, a smile of approval on her face, slowly clapped.

"Perfect, slave, perfect! Truly a joke unworthy to be heard by a Sith - at its centre are two Jawas, some of the most pathetic lifeforms in the universe. And here we see them at their peak of misery, being unable to meet the expectations that we set for everyone. A joke like that would be good to tell to the soldiers so they could laugh at the silly creatures being silly, but to Sith... we already know how worthless such beasts are, and any reminder about is at best unnecessary and at worst insulting. Unlike the Hutt who have some influence in the galaxy and thus can be mocked for their lack of vision in regards to the misery of their existence, the Jawas are nothing. Well done, slave. You will no longer waste your potential in the labour camps. From now on, you will serve the soldiers and the Sith directly, clean our living rooms, entertain us and do whatever else we ask of you. Your new duties begin now".

I wanted to express my gratitude to her, to swear undying loyalty... but stopped. As a Sith, she didn't want my gratitude and she already had my loyalty due to me being a slave. And considering how she disliked when people wasted words with her, saying either of these things would do me no good.

"My Lord, how can I serve you now?"

"Ah, immediately taking in your new role and wasting no time with empty words of gratitude so many throw at me after given this chance! Now, slave, don't let this get to your head, but listen - you have already displayed more discipline and wit than any other wretch I have seen. If you are to continue this behaviour, perhaps you shall one day gain some of your freedom back. But this talk is about a distant future, and for now... prepare me a bath and clean my room. After this, got to the main hall and present this token to the guard at the desk. You will be led to your new living space"

To say that I was happy would do no justice to the emotions that have swelled within me. All this time trying to improve my life, and now I was one step closer to my goal! And while one could argue that this improvement happened by chance, and chance was certainly a part of it, that wouldn't be the whole story - the Sith would select only those slaves that did their duty better than anyone else. To what end, I didn't know at first - as far as I knew, most of the chosen just died and the rest disappeared. Now I knew where the disappeared went to - to serve the Sith and the Empire directly. And I was now among the lucky few, and if I were to continue on this path, I might be... free? The thought of it was intoxicating, but I had to put it aside. Like the Sith Lord said, this was a distant future. For now, I had a bath to fill and a room to clean... that being said, now I understood what my mother meant when, after hearing fresh gossip from the city, she would exclaim that it's better to be a wise idiot than a smart fool. This Sith definitely was the latter - while she clearly possessed plenty of knowledge, she either overthought the events around her or inserted too much of her own bias while interpreting them. Not that I was complaining, considering these exact qualities of her character gave me a promotion.

The second and by far more important reason my life got improved was my Force Sensitivity, though I wasn't aware I even had it. It got discovered by accident - during another one of my joke rounds with the soldiers and some Sith, an occasion I got to do more often since the rumour of my promotion and the reason behind it got around the place. This task was extremely difficult to perform as I had to create new jokes to keep people entertained, but for some reasons everyone always wanted to hear the three jokes that I told Darth Meridina - that turned out to be the name of the Sith Pureblood who also got a promotion since my test. I decided to exploit this occasion to my advantage: the soldiers and the Sith would get somewhat intoxicated in the lounge room before demanding jokes, meaning that I often needed to tell around five jokes before their laughter was too much for them to bear and either some of them crashed into furniture or started bothering one of the other servants. That meant that I needed to only come with two, maximum three new jokes a time and they didn't even have to be that good.

As I started telling a joke involving a Bantha, Sand Demon and a Crayt Dragon, one of the soldiers accidentally fired from his blaster. If not for the fact the pistol was pointed across the room no-one would probably even notice it, but alas the idiot was flailing his arms while also having a gun in his hands.

This however wasn't what "stole the show" on that evening - as I saw the bolt going through the room I instinctively threw my hand at its trajectory. And instead of going through my hand the bolt crashed into it. The small sparks of plasma flew away from the impact and settled on the sofa and the floor, now harmless.

Silence fell across the room as everyone present was now staring at me. For the first time in quite a while I felt fear - I didn't know what and how it happened but this looked too much like the power the Sith wielded. While that may seem like a plus initially, the Sith did not want any signs of revolt from the slaves. Too much power was one of these signs - one week ago, another slave who was one of Lord Meridina's favourites punched a solder so hard his skull broke. He disappeared on the evening of the same day and two days later Meridina has put his charred remains in the middle of the slave dorm. That slave had too much power and was killed. And now I had too much power that I also used among servants of the Sith Empire.

I quickly shouted that I would get the cleaning tools and darted out of the room. I ran into the slave dorm, threw my body onto the bed and tried to lie as still as possible... as if it would hide me from the Sith. Still, this gave me an opportunity to think on the event - while my action certainly will raise questions tomorrow, I could say that the blaster was probably on minimum energy. I sincerely doubted that the soldier would be stupid enough to say he fired a lethal bolt of energy in a crowded room... come to think of it, what if it was a minimum energy shot in the first place? It was certainly not impossible to deflect such shots, only your skin would be a bit burned...

I wanted to look at my hand but my lack of movement so far helped a lot in calming me down, so I decided to keep still for now and inspect the hand after I will have collected my thoughts. But even if the hand wasn't damaged I could just burn it-

The sound of the door sliding open caught my attention. I turned my head towards the noise, only to see the robes of a Sith Lord in the doorway. For some reason the figure just stared at me, not moving at all. I quickly got up and bowed, deciding not to endanger my position anymore than I already did.

"Slave, your presence is required. Come with me!"

With that, he turned around and sped up along the hallway. I ran, trying to keep up. This way we both navigated the facility until we reached the entrance to the chamber of the Dark Lords of the Sith, the highest authority around. It was at this point I realised I might never come out of this room again... unless they buy my story with the low energy bolt.

I entered the room after the Sith Lord. In the centre stood a long table, Darth Meridina sitting in the middle and two Darths to each side of her, all facing me. To the left of the table stood the soldier who has fired the shot, his blaster laying on the table. The figure to the right of Darth Meridina, an elderly man, spoke up.

"Ah, slave. Good that you have chosen to join us tonight. We have heard about the incident downstairs and would like to hear the story from you, but before that... Sergeant Sylek?"

"Yes, my Lord?"

"Will you please explain why you decided to open fire in a living room, potentially endangering the lives of the soldiers and Sith located there?"

"M-my Lord, I must have gotten carried away with the jokes this slave was telling... b-but I wouldn't be able to hurt anyone anyway! This slave was able to block the shot with his bare hand! I wouldn't knowingly put the lives of anyone in the room in danger!"

"That is good to hear, Sergeant... I see the power of your blaster is indeed set to minimum, so your story is true... unless you switched it after you've realised what you did".

"No, My Lord! The blaster was taken away almost immediately, I couldn't have changed it!"

"Fair point, Sergeant... so, just to recap - you heard the slave tell a joke, and then?"

"I... I got carried away and pressed the trigger while laughing, My Lord".

"Hmm... like this?"

Whatever hope I had of escaping this situation just vanished. The Sith spoke in a calm tone, not showing any signs of anger and the soldier did indeed fire a weak blaster bolt! However, as soon as the Sith finished speaking, he fired the blaster at the Sergeant's face. As a result, what used to be his left eye was now a steaming hole in his head.

"I do not tolerate lies, especially such pathetic ones. The gun was set to maximum power all this time... but while our dear Sergeant here lies on the floor, you, slave, stand unharmed. Show me your hand".

I immediately thrust out my hand. The Darth chuckled at my reaction, then looked at the hand.

"No trace of damage. Well, slave, I have good news and bad news for you. Good news is, you are Force Sensitive like us and thus may be able to join the ranks of the Sith. Bad news is, you are Force Sensitive and a slave; you don't have any noble Sith Ancestry or Sith blood, meaning that it would be much more convenient to dispose of you and forget this unfortunate accident in its entirety".

"If I may, My Lord?"

Both the Darth and myself turned our heads in the direction of the voice. It was the Sith Lord that has brought me into the room.

"What is it that bothers you, Lord Dai-Ren?"

"I believe that killing this slave will be a waste of potential. Not many acolytes are capable of stopping a blaster bolt and this slave did so without any training. Additionally, when I went to retrieve and bring the slave to you... well, initially I was only able to see half of the body"

"Are you suggesting that this slave was able to Vanish without any training, Lord Dai-Ren?"

"Only partially and it seemed to be more of an instinctive move rather than a proper technique, but it was a Vanish"

"Enough of this! Dai-Ren, what are you doing, defending some worthless slave! And you Denkar, how can you listen to this nonsense! I saw we kill this heap of trash now and forget this ever happened! What say you, Meridina?"

"Are you out of your mind, Darth Paan? This slave was able to block a blaster bolt. Not deflect, not absorb, but block it. On top of that, becoming invisible? And you are seriously suggesting to throw that much potential away?"

"Hmph! You just don't want to look bad in the eyes of Denkar since it was you who elevated this slave from a simple worker to our servant. What, did you think I wouldn't find out?"

"Enough!"

The shout from Darth Denkar threw all of us off guard, the Sith didn't look like the type to raise his voice. Darth Paan, the last Dark Lord of the Sith in the room, a young woman with several large scars over her body, tried to protest but then Denkar... pulsed? For a moment, his figure emanated some sort of purple-coloured essence, touching which sent me shivers all the way up the spine. Darth Paan also felt the effect and begrudgingly sat down.

"I agree with Meridina and Dai-Ren. This slave has potential, too much potential to throw away... but I first wish to see what character is this power attached to".

Darth Denkar turned to me and looked me in the eyes, his figure once again enveloped in the purple light. Then he put a hand into his robe and pulled out...

"I believe these things once belonged to you, slave. They are the tokens from your past you have strong emotional connection with. I want to see what you will do with them".

Shoes. Bracelet. Pants. All three were now on the table. How was it even possible? I thought they were all destroyed after we gave our belongings to the guards! Clearly not, for they were now right in front of me. But does it mean that all our belongings are stored? That makes no sense, what would be the point of that?

I decided to push unnecessary thoughts out of my head. Paan wanted to see my reaction to these items. A weird demand, but if my reaction was satisfying I will be free. That much I was able to understand from the conversation between the Sith Lords. I was also Force Sensitive and it seemed to imply I was capable of doing the same feats other Sith could, which included but was most definitely not limited to summoning lightning from your fingers, choking people, moving objects without touching them, stopping bolts of plasma and turning invisible... I would be a fool to miss such an opportunity.

I approached the items and tried to think back to my family. At first, I couldn't remember their names or faces. I was confused - it hadn't been even a year and I already forgot those close to me? Before I could get angry at myself however, something seemed to have clicked in my head. All of the past came back to me at once with a force of a tidal wave - I remembered every moment of our life together, from growing up to helping around the household to having dinner with other locals to visiting Jawa traders... to their deaths. The emotion that was locked away has come out and overwhelmed me. I couldn't do much but stand and cry. Part of me screamed to toughen up, to stop behaving like a weakling. Surely Darth Denkar would disapprove of such behaviour! Yet I wasn't able to hold back the tears and Darth Denkar didn't seem to intervene, so I kept on crying.

As I was about to calm down, a sudden realisation hit my head - the Sith Empire, for which I has worked and was now offering me to become its member, was responsible for their deaths. Rage started spreading all over my body as the thought has started to expand itself in my brain. I was about to become a member of the organisation that killed my parents. All things considered, if I end up becoming a Sith I would most probably do what Darth Paan is doing now - overseeing more slaves, causing more suffering... but that didn't have to go this way. I could join the Sith and then use my knowledge and power to destroy the Empire. Make them pay for what they did to my family and make sure no such atrocities will be committed again. I smiled to myself. Darth Denkar now wanted me to cast my past aside, that much was certain; he wanted to be sure that the person in front of him was nothing more than an obedient slave. Very well, I will play the part by pretending to be the Empire's dog until the right time. And when the time comes... I shall take pleasure turning their bodies into nothing more than clumps of flesh and bone.

Returning my expression back to neutral, I was about to turn around and leave the tokens of my past behind when all the thoughts I have just experienced registered in my conscience... since when was I a murderer, and a sadistic one at that? During my time on the farm I never got into trouble and even here in the slave camp I didn't kill anyone. Then why am I suddenly out for the blood of the whole Empire? Such a large organisation cannot have everyone committing atrocities, why would I want to kill a potentially large number of innocents?

The Empire was responsible for the current war and for the murder of my family. That much was true. But what did I do when my parents were executed and my sister and I had to watch? Nothing. What did I do when my sister tried to grab a gun and shoot those that killed our parents? Nothing. My whole family was killed before my eyes, I quietly submitted to the role of a slave... and now I am thinking of plotting vengeance? After erasing them out of my memory for almost half a year? That sounded hypocritical.

And yet... I didn't do anything when my family was killed but not because I chose not to; rather, there was nothing I could do, but now I had the chance to change that - after surviving and enduring, I could live on, for them and for myself. And if I were to throw myself away to rage and vengeance I would be unable to do this.

I placed my hand on the items. "Mom, Dad, Sis... I am sorry I didn't save you back then. I was weak... and still am. But now I have a chance to live on and attain power that may help me prevent the atrocities such as one that took your lives. I will not allow needless deaths to happen under my command, I will protect those that cannot protect themselves and I will help them get stronger. I will work for the Empire, but I will protect its citizens, not wage wars. I will become a Sith, with knowledge and power to rival anyone in the galaxy, but I will not use it to inflict harm on powerless. Shall I fight, I will try to avoid killing my opponents, instead getting them to join my cause. For the weak and powerless, I will fight. The Empire, I shall protect. My opponents, I shall subdue. This, I swear to you".

As I was saying my oath, I could feel something stir inside me. By the time I have finished, I felt like a battery, overcharged with energy. Power flowed beneath my skin, and with it I have felt. Compassion. Love. Empathy. Pity. Indignation. Devotion. These emotions seemed to have amplified my power tenfold, forcing the energy inside me to radiate outside of my body. Silver light started pouring out of me, making me feel the surrounding area, my body, my mind... and a foreign presence inside of it.

Instinctively I threw the energy around me. I heard a yell of pain, followed by the foreign presence leaving my mind. I turned towards the sound of the voice, only to find Darth Denkar, his left hand wrapped around his right one.

"I will be honest with you slave, I am... uncertain. You have power, yet you know nothing of the Sith. Trying to protect people without hurting anyone? Impossible. What if an enemy comes to your home? How will you protect those you care about if you don't kill the enemy? You want to subdue your opponents, to have them join you... what about fanatics, professional assassins, droids? How will you reason with that which cannot be reasoned with? You did call to your passions and emotions, but what kind of emotions are these? A Sith uses rage, hatred, anger, pain, fear, sometimes lust... but most definitely not pity, empathy, devotion or love. Indignation may be of use, though righteous fury is a feeble tool - if you cannot by your own oath harm your enemies, how are you planning on feeling anger of any sort towards them? You have got power, there is no denying that... but your spirit is lacking".

"My Lord... how did you obtain my items?"

"Whose presence do you think you've felt in your mind, slave? It was I created an illusion of the tokens you hold so dear; I have brought back the memories of your family back to throw you off balance, then stoked the anger inside of you to see how you would react. Usually there are two options here - you either give in to the anger, harness it and unleash your power, or you suppress it. Former gets you into the Sith Academy, latter gets your corpse into the local pond. You however decided to let go of your anger as a power source and instead went for other emotions... and I am not sure what to make of it".

Denkar started walking across the room while Paan and Meridina started discussing the situation. Paan demanded that I be killed, Meridina kept on saying how Sith use their passions, and anger was but one of them. Dai-Ren was sitting on the floor, observing the conversation, occasionally glancing at me in a combination of admiration and concern.

As they were arguing, I attempted to understand what exactly happened to me. It seems that the Sith use their emotions as a source of power or at least a catalyst for their power, anger being the primary one. While I did use the emotions, which seemed to be very relevant to the Sith, I didn't use anger which caused some concern. It seemed that my fate now depended on whether or not my emotions would be considered good enough. As far as I was concerned, this decision was a coin toss I couldn't affect anyway, so I decided to focus on my oath instead. Alas, Darth Denkar was right - the oath was virtuous and perfect... and therefore ultimately destined to fail in an immoral and flawed world we were living in. Come to think of it, I didn't even know what forced me to say it in the first place. Perhaps I was trying to counteract all the rage and anger I have previously felt... regardless, I have now given a promise I couldn't fulfil, thought not for the lack of trying. However, there was still a way - I might not be able to create a world where such a vow would not be broken... but I can ensure that others will pick up my teachings and continue.

Darth Denkar's voice has interrupted my inner monologue. The old Sith has proclaimed to have reached a conclusion. As everyone in the room fell silent and looked at him, myself included, Denkar smiled and locked his eyes with mine. Now he looked less like a human and more like a predator who has spotted a prey and was intending to rip it to shreds.

"Slave! You know nothing of the Sith, your emotions are pathetic and your goals in life will never be achieved. And that is why I deem you worthy to send you to the Sith Academy. There, your naiveite will crumble to dust, your vow will be forgotten. You will see that there is no good or evil in this world, just labels we put to justify conquest, and your indignation will turn to anger. You will see that people you help will use your help to destroy you, and your empathy will turn to pain. You will see that no bond, no matter how strong the words is forever and everyone will betray each other at any given opportunity, and your love will turn to hatred. You will be broken and reborn, another Sith to serve the Empire."

Darth Paan tried to object but Denkar silenced her with but a wave of his hand.

"Next week you will be transported to Korriban. Until that time... Darth Meridina, would you be so kind as to get at least some information about the Sith Order into that thick head over there? Oh, and a few Force techniques. I wouldn't want our little slave to die on the very first day. No, you will experience all the glory of the Sith Empire and shatter under it, only to rise as its loyal servant".

With that, Denkar has left the room, Paan and Dai-Ren following him. Meridina seemed to gather her thoughts for a moment. Then she abruptly stood from her chair and walked towards me.

"Come. We have work to do".


	2. Prologue - Training

Darth Meridina has led me to her chambers and instructed that I wait in the living room while she takes care of some business. As I was left to myself, stream of thoughts started ravaging my already tired mind – will I be trained to be Sith? Wasn't I proclaimed to be unworthy? How would I be broken? What if I wouldn't break?

Forcing myself to calm down, I attempted to paint a less emotional image of the situation. I was still alive and elevated beyond even my wildest dreams. Sure, I've heard tales of slaves rising to positions of power within the Empire but I've also heard the Galaxy had three bearded banthas in its centre. I knew slavery was all I could ever hope to see in life by default and my exceptional labour guaranteed me a somewhat cosy retirement and citizenship according to my overseers: work a few more years, become member of the Empire and go into the world as a free man, one overseer I went to great lengths to befriend would tell me. After that… well, I had a habit of planning things one step at a time, so I didn't plan that far ahead. And now it appears it may no longer be necessary.

What do I know of the Sith? The ones I've seen preaching to us about the glory of the Empire and the insignificance of us slaves in it were mere apprentices, students, youngsters. They were arrogant, haughty and quick to anger, eager to show their power, usually by turning some poor sod who looked at them wrong into a burnt, steaming corpse. Then there are the Darths and the Lords, of which I've just seen three. They are much harder to generalise. Sure, they are powerful, but power is a loose concept. My overseers are powerful as compared to me, the Sith apprentices are powerful as compared to us both… Denkar seemed like a jovial and cheerful old man but was much more terrifying under close inspection. He rarely raised his voice or spoke in any other way than his sweet, coaxing voice, but in that voice he could ask about your well-being and order a stew out of three kids in the same sentence… Paan seemed simple enough: aggressive, violent, arrogant, much like the apprentices; yet she clearly was ranks above them, and her cybernetics gave off an even scarier aura than any lightning I've seen other Sith conjure up. That left Meridina, seemingly my benefactor; on first glance she was cold, cruel and apathetic to the world and its suffering. Yet she wasn't without reason and would reward creativity, honesty and to an extent bravery.

It appears the Sith in general are cruel, powerful and scheming individuals. They value strength of spirit and body; they enjoy show of force and they care little for others. Is that what Denkar wanted me to see at that Sith Academy, what he wants me to become? I couldn't imagine myself as such a person… though I couldn't imagine myself as a slave either. Survival is a matter of adaptation my father used to say; surely by becoming a proper Sith I'll be to live and prosper, become something greater…

No. When I became a slave, I was told that I was insignificant, that I should keep low and die in the labour pits. And yet I didn't; on the contrary, I excelled at tasks given to me, I never stayed low and made sure all would know I am the best worker; I didn't abandon fellow slaves in moments of need despite claims regarding the importance of our lives, or rather the lack thereof. My success and current position were not the result of blindly following the dogma and becoming the exact man I was expected to be. Not that I wasn't following orders and adhering to social code and hierarchy but I didn't forget who I was in doing so. If I were going to enter the Sith Academy and become a Sith, I would do so while keeping the integral part of who I am to me.

I looked into the mirror. Slightly messed up hair after all the ruckus today, darting eyes, clean but ruffled clothing… not exactly a model Sith but much better than dirty, ragged slave I was mere months ago.

"Sith Academy, here I come!"

Pathetic statement, overblown bravado. I looked into the mirror and tried again.

"I have seen what Sith become and was told I would share the same fate. I cannot allow that to happen. I swore a vow and I'll be damned if I break it so soon. I have endured the death of my family, the slavery and now I will, no, must endure and overcome the Academy. Failure is not an option".

"Well spoken".

I quickly turned around to see Darth Meridina. How long did she stay in the room while I was too oblivious to my surroundings, too consumed in my own thoughts? I bowed down to the Sith Lord.

"There is no need to feel embarrassed. It will do you well to protect your thoughts and mind your environment but it comes with practice and experience. For now, it is important you be prepared for the trials of the Academy. Do not be disillusioned: one week is not enough to learn everything there is, it will not be enough to even cover the basics. However, you will learn at the Academy and during your trials, your successes and failures. I shall test your power and give you an understanding of your abilities. It is already more than most get, so treasure this knowledge and use it well".

"Thank you, My Lord".

"You will spend the next week resting in my chambers. Your clothes will be delivered to you tomorrow, right now you should get some sleep. I will be waiting for you tomorrow at seven on the training grounds, it is in your best interest to arrive on time".

I have spent the next week grasping the basics of the Force, the mystical energy that was flowing through the world and Sith were able to access. Darth Meridina insisted I do not learn the Sith code yet but gave a basic understanding of how Sith use the Force, how to draw on your emotions to channel power from within your body. Having seen my defensive ability early on Meridina decided to further work with it, practice it and improve my Force Shield. She would have me focus the Force into an ablative barrier for hours on, throwing various projectiles into my barrier and even Force Lightning. The latter I only could hold for mere seconds but even those moments of power were beyond my wildest imagination: to watch the power that turned my co-workers and friends into paste and ash held at bay…

Darth Paan would join during the last three days of my training. The cyborg Sith walked around me, jabbing at my shield with her lightsaber or lightning-coated fists. Needless to say, I ended up with more bruises in those three days than in the past year easily. Darth Meridina would tend to more serious wounds with healing powers, channelling the Dark Side to flow into my body and speed up its recovery process. I was enthralled by such power and asked if I could study it. After all, if my barrier can be broken easily, I might as well learn to patch myself up afterwards. The Sith woman considered my question and told me she would give an answer at the end of the week.

The last day of training has passed. I woke up next morning, a bit earlier in the anticipation of my departure. Having packed my few belongings beforehand I took the time to reflect upon my progress. Meridina was a calm teacher, rarely mocking me or raising her voice unlike Darth Paan. She would show her displeasure by saying nothing, letting me work my way to success, during which she would briefly nod or smile and provide further instructions. After one week of practicing my barrier, failing to produce anything even remotely resembling decent Force Lightning, instead firing off a single bolt after several seconds of concentration and brushing up my vibroknife skills, I certainly felt powerful. At the same time, I clearly was no match for Meridina or Paan or probably any other Sith out there, the bruises and scars on my body being more than ample evidence. Still, now I could levitate objects with mere thought, shrug off attacks for enough time to press my own advance with the power of the Force and my passions. I tried thinking of my vow when bringing up the barrier, using the resolve to bolster the defences. While it didn't work the first time Meridina approved of me using my emotions to fuel the Force techniques and at the end of the training I was able to hold off her lightning for several seconds. A laughably short amount of time, but not only did it feel like hours during our sparring, it begged the question – if one week of training was enough to produce such results, what could I achieve with more time?

In the Force I sensed Meridina wake up. She told me to train passively by stretching my senses out through the Force to both hone my control skills and deepen my understandings on the Force and my surroundings. Sadly, I couldn't gather much on Meridina as she was almost always shielded. A different kind of barrier, she would explain, one that protected your mind from being read and stopped various psychic attacks during battle. One that I was definitely eager to learn at the Academy at the first opportunity for certain. That, and healing, and maybe perfect my lightning…

"Good morning, My Lord".

"You are awake earlier than needed. Didn't I tell you to sleep as much as you needed?"

"I no longer wanted to sleep, My Lord".

"Oh? So eager to abandon your teacher, are we? Ah, wipe that scared look off your face, it is unbefit of the Sith! Your early awakening offers an opportunity for me to offer parting gifts with little worry of time. First, know that Sith Academy is a place of constant competition. If you want to learn, prove that you deserve it, claw your way to the top. And second… Dai-Ren will accompany you to the Ziost spaceport and onto Korriban space station. The journey will take about ten days in total, during which you must further train your skills. Darth Denkar has agreed for his apprentice to further train you during the travels; once you board the shuttle to Korriban you are to speak nothing of us and our training. Those wise enough will see your expertise, the rest need not know of your preparations, it will gather too much unnecessary attention. Dai-Ren will also take a small holocron with simple healing techniques. He will hand it over to you, study well from it".

Unable to express my gratitude with mere words, I bowed down. I felt Meridina's hands straighten me up, smile on her face.

"Thank you for being such a generous teacher. I will not forget your lessons".

"And thank you for being a good student. It takes both for lessons to be useful. Remember your vows, let your compassion and kindness fuel your shield and healing hands. On your journeys you will face many adversities and meet many allies. You will not be able to protect them all, but do not give up. Remember the fallen, learn from the times you couldn't protect them and carry on, for their sake and for the sake of those you can protect".

I nodded, honoured by the words of advice. Yet, I disagreed with Darth Meridina: by my vow I will protect everyone, no excuses! I've already trained beyond my imagination withing the past week, just wait till I fully learn to be Sith proper! Meridina, still smiling, shook her head briefly and lead me out of her rooms, to the landing pad. Darth Denkar and Darth Paan were there, as well as the transport shuttle currently revving up its engines. As I approached the two Sith, Denkar slowly raised his hands and channelled Force Lightning at me, his smile never leaving his elderly face. Though not being able to sense his intentions through the Force, I nevertheless threw my hands outwards as I saw small sparks dance on his fingers moments before the attack. My barrier took the full force of his attack, though in my haste I didn't properly balance it, not covering my legs. While no damage passed to them, I was knocked off balance with the sheer force of the onslaught. This not being the first time I landed on my ass during training I braced for the fall, never leaving Denkar out my eyesight as the old man dashed towards me with inhuman speed and extended his hand towards me, smiling at me in his kind, elderly way that would deceive anyone into thinking he was harmless and kind.

"My oh my, what an impressive reaction! Even knocked down you were ready for me, something few can say. I see Meridina has trained you very well, just as I expected. Would be a shame if the shuttle had to fly empty, a shame indeed. Now get up, say your goodbyes to old Denkar and Paan and your teacher and off you go!"

I carefully took Denkar's hand. In a brief moment I suddenly found myself in an empty void, family looking at me. Then, just as it happened the vision was gone. Did the adrenaline of the clash cause the hallucination? Denkar pulled me from the ground with little to no effort and gestured to the shuttle. I looked around. Paan just huffed at me and walked behind Denkar while Meridina seemed to look at Denkar with a mixture of concern and annoyance. Seeing that neither of the two Sith Lords payed me much attention and Meridina and I already said our farewells, I bowed to the three Darths and walked into the shuttle. Inside was Dai-Ren who grinned upon seeing me and offered a handshake. Unlike the Darths I could sense his happiness and sincerity in the greeting and accepted the gesture of friendship.

"Impressive work blocking Denkar's ass blast! Was a bit worried you wouldn't pull it off but Meridina sure did a work on you, eh?"

"She's a great teacher".

"Ha! Tell me all about it during our travel, I need pointers if I am to make sure you don't slack on the ship!"

"That wasn't my intention!"

Dai-Ren's camaraderie initially threw me off. And yet it felt right. Sith apprentice no longer saw me as a slave but as a fellow student, and after him admitting he was glad I was "hauling my ass far away from him" and thus removing potential competition he was all too eager to help me. During the shuttle transfer to Ziost spaceport and then hyperspace jump to Korriban space station I kept on practicing my skills in the Force. Dai-Ren's lightning was much weaker than that of Meridina and I was able to hold him off while levitating objects or sparring or trying to master my own lightning. Try as hard as I did, I couldn't produce beautiful arcs of power like other Sith I've seen. At best I could make a single bolt of lightning, though I noticed that Dai-Ren had more difficulty holding it off than I did his many-pointed lightning. Perhaps trying to focus more power into single attack could be beneficial? I should keep that in mind.

As the hyperspace cruiser embarked on its journey, leaving less than a day of travels, Dai-Ren called me into his room. He checked that the door was properly locked and pulled a fist-sized many-sided orb in front of me. It resonated with an emerald green light. Though it was the first time seeing a holocron, I felt what it was, how it was. Taking the relic of the Sith into my palm, I focused my empathy into it, and the images started pouring into my brain. I saw Meridina channelling the Force to heal, I was Meridina mending broken bones. As I broke off the concentration, I saw green energy trace itself along my body, I felt some of my scars heal up and close more. Dai-Ren whistled, impressed at the sight.

"Never bothered too much with healing. As an old wisdom goes, best way to heal yourself is kill the enemy. Still… shit, think you can patch up some of the presents you gave me during training? Damn, you handle the training sword like shit but I wouldn't want to meet you in a dark alley with that damned knife".

"Had to remember good old life-saving skills, not exactly too sorry about the result".

"Good, don't be, most enemies aren't as polite as I am".

"If you are polite, I dread to meet truly rude foes".

"You bet your ass you do, you bet your damn knife-wielding shield-tossing ass you do!"

As we exchanged pleasantries, I focused on the memories glimpsed on the holocron and holding the relic in my hand for extra certainty. Seeing Dai-Ren's scars heal up I nodded in satisfaction and put the relic away in my backpack, feeling rather exhausted. Dai-Ren, happy with the result, helped me to my room. As I went to bed, I again found myself in the void with my family, the scene happening almost too fast for me to register it. I frowned, trying to understand what was happening. Could it be the Force manifesting itself in me? No, the vision didn't feel right, didn't feel like it was mine. I went to bed, making a note to research the issue later. Perhaps the Academy had the answers I needed?

My rest didn't go well. I woke up twice, hearing screams and shots, stench of burnt flesh on my nostrils. That has never happened before. Sure, there were times I couldn't sleep before but never have the nightmares been so vivid. Forcing myself to calm down I got the rest of my sleep; my nightmares shouldn't get in the way of my training and journey to the academy and rest was much needed if I were to enter the place level-headed.

The shuttle docked with the Korriban space station soon after I woke up. Quickly checking my belongings, mostly making sure Meridina's holocron was well-hidden among my clothes I stepped off the shuttle. Quickly led through personnel corridors with Dai-Ren and two troopers we arrived at a military hangar, where I saw more people loaded into a large, old-looking shuttle. Compared to the one Dai-Ren and I flew on, ours looked like a luxury cruiser. I noticed the guards pushing people into the shuttles confiscating their items, as well as people being dressed in almost identical robes. As I started nervously fidgeting with my backpack straps, Dai-Ren sped up to one of the guards and engaged him in conversation. The guard looked in my direction, nodded and resumed his duties. Dai-Ren waved me over to them.

"Your backpack will be returned to you upon arrival, no worries there… feeling sentimental about your clothes?"

"I will put them into the backpack".

"Huh, good thinking. Well, looks like this is goodbye… try not to get killed too fast, I recommend you check up on the bestiary as soon as possible. Oh, and don't forget to visit academy instructors. One last thing! Make sure to mind your, eh, force things. You know, dreams and all that, could be dangerous".

"Thank you, Dai-Ren. May the Force be with you and good luck on your journeys".

"Ha! Force better be with such a dashing bastard as myself! You take care of yourself as well".

With that Dai-Ren turned around and exited the hangar, the two troopers following suit. Shuttle guard quickly sized me up and issued me same gear as the rest of the people on the shuttle got: red shirt, brown pants, simple black shoes. After I changed and gave my backpack to the guard, I was escorted onto the ship and locked within a very small cell with no windows. Judging by the muffled curses and voices all around me similar fate has occurred to other initiates. I remembered seeing several guards and a robed and hooded figure sitting normally in the shuttle as I entered; perhaps the figure was our instructor or another Sith? That hardly mattered now: I felt the ship shudder slightly as we exited the space station and went towards the Academy. I knew it was located on Korriban, apparently a Sith homeworld but that is where my knowledge ended. Darth Meridina insisted I learn the things on the spot and in the environment… and I was going to do just that.


	3. Part 1 - arrival on Korriban

I have tried getting some rest inside my pod but the constant sounds from other cellmates didn't allow for a nap. Focusing my thoughts I attempted to sense the surroundings with the Force; initially it proved difficult, as if the physical walls of my confinement were also preventing me from reaching out with the Force; as I let my anger at the situation and curiosity take hold and enhance my reach, I started sensing two auras in the force, both very weak. One was resonating with fear, the other bore traces of optimism and curiosity, similar to mine. After trying a few more times to expand my reach and failing to sense anything new aside from the guards I closed my eyes and meditated on the recent events.

Our travel conditions were bad; had I not been a slave for so long I would most certainly view them as barbaric. Fortunately, my experiences of sleeping in mining tunnels or worse helped in feeling somewhat comfortable in my cell block. Still, it is strange that future Sith, clearly influential figures in the Empire are handled with such disgrace. I could maybe understand my position being the former slave, but surely the others are from higher social rank? Or perhaps it is part of the trials of becoming a Sith, learning to adapt to harsh situations? Would certainly explain why all the Sith I've seen are so cranky all the time. Well, it was safe to say I was off to a good start.

I heard the shuttle's engines change, it appeared we were about to land. Indeed, the rumbling of the engines gradually got quieter and I felt a soft vibration through the hull as the shuttle docked. There was clanging noise, most likely cell doors opening, some yelps and screams and footsteps. Eventually my door was opened. The guard, same one that took my backpack, returned my possessions with a curt nod and also handed me a training sword, long vibroblade meant to act as a training sabre until we would receive our lightsabers, weapon I wasn't exactly good with. Thanking the guard, I affixed the blade next to my backpack and exited the shuttle.

Even before leaving the spacecraft I have felt hot, dry and arid air blowing into the shuttle. That made me quite happy, at least the homeworld of the Sith shared same weather with my home planet. Stepping outside though, I had to rub my eyes to make sure I suddenly didn't go insane: the whole planet was red. Red mountains and sand, reddish sky… I looked around. Blood-red statues dozens of metres tall, several metallic structures in the valley below and one right up ahead the landing pad. And all around me, the sensation of death. Out of curiosity I spread myself out through the Force, feeling all manners of death around me: an animal fried by lightning, despaired Twi'lek cut down by a crimson blade, cold metallic hands choking a young man… it was overwhelming.

I was knocked out of my trance by a shove. Sensing small vibrations in the Force right next to me I found the hooded figure from the shuttle saunter past. As the figure glanced back, I could swear I saw reddish skin, almost the same tone as that of the surroundings. That wasn't an alien I've ever seen before. Perhaps an illusion? I reached out towards the now departing figure with the Force but detected no deceit, no secrets. If anything, the aura of the entity was rather clear to read, pulses of violence around a dark, hateful aura, feeling stronger than mine though not by a large margin, clearly weaker than Dai-Ren.

It was at this time I've realised I needed to proceed into the Academy. Deciding to follow the figure at a distance, I saw a group of six individuals standing a bit further away, five of them wearing red shirts identical to mine, standing in a semi-circle around a man in light armour with a very distinct beard, almost a goatee. He seemed to be talking to other acolytes though he was too far for me to hear the words. As he glanced on the hooded figure, they exchanged short nods before the figure went further up the road into a building nearby. Then the bearded man turned to me.

"Ah, the last one to arrive is finally here. I hope you don't think you are special. It would be a shame if freedom went to your head or if you somehow got the idea you didn't need to pass your trials to become Sith! Lord Zash has tasked me with sorting through you refuse to find one worthy of being her apprentice… and I intend to do just that".

The man didn't raise his voice but contempt and hatred seeped from his lips like a drying stream: not overwhelming but ever-present, slowly creeping into you, eroding your confidence. However, he wasn't the ever-menacing yet polite Denkar or outright hateful Paan and he wasn't bearing over me in the Force. As he was speaking, I maintained eye contact, thinking of my options. Meridina instructed me to not reveal my training to anyone, and he seemed to think me as nothing more than a slave. Very well, let me play along and get information.

"I am here to pass your trials, Lord?.."

"I am Overseer Harkun and I already know why you are here, fool! Now, the rest of you gutter trash already know your trial. Get going while I bring our latecomer up to speed".

"Watch your back, friend. And don't worry, it'll be alright. He can't kill us all".

Both Harkun and I looked into the direction of a female voice, I in surprise and Harkun in contempt. The speaker was a young girl, red hair, green eyes, looking rather jovial, almost ruining otherwise gloomy and dark atmosphere around us. Reaching out through the Force I realised it was her optimistic presence I've felt in the shuttle. Deciding not to annoy Overseer Harkun while already coming late, I gave the girl a brief smile and a nod before turning to look at Harkun, jerking my body at attention to re-establish eye contact. He did so, but not before following the girl with a very dark look as she entered a building close by.

"Now, slave, for your trial: there's a hermit named Spindrall who lives in the tomb of Ajunta Pall in the Valley of the Dark Lords. Spindrall's a lunatic but Lord Zash sees him as some kind of prophet. Once you find him, he will test you".

"As you command, Overseer Harkun".

"But there, you know your task. Spindrall lives in the tomb of Ajunta Pall in the Valley of the Dark Lords. Don't keep Spindrall waiting, slave".

As Harkun was talking, repeating the location of the hermit, he gestured towards the building other acolytes walked in. I bowed to him and started heading that way, earning a small nod and a smirk from the Overseer who seemed to view my complacency in good light. He clearly thought little of me but if I am to make a good enough impression of a loyal acolyte who follows orders, perhaps I could make an ally or even a friend out of him.

Walking through the building and onto a balcony that oversaw a small valley, I decided to change gear a bit. Still keeping the holocron hidden I found and attached my vibroknife to my belt. I was much more comfortable using it compared to the vibroblade, mostly due to having plenty of experience with it when I was growing up, and my training during the last days was with the knife, not the blade. I would still keep it and learn to use it, but for now it seemed a logical choice to enter the tomb with something I was comfortable handling. With my preparations complete, I fastened my backpack and started walking on the sand. Glancing around I saw more structures and balconies further up ahead, with even some people watching from above. I waved to them, hearing some laughter in response and some hand motions, as if they were passing something small to each other… credits? They are making bets, but for what? They seem to be looking at me but I am alone in the valley… unless?

As I was walking towards a stone structure at the end of the valley, I felt a small tremble in the ground. Of course there had to be something in the sand, much like on my home! I quickly stepped backwards with my hand on the knife. I expected to see maybe some large rodent, but an enormous larva-looking clawed monstrosity didn't even cross my mind. As it reared itself up from the ground it gave me enough time to charge my lightning up. Should have gone for me immediately… then again, my knife was already in hand and my barrier active. As it attempted to right its mistake and charge me, I stepped forward and thrust my hand, sending a bolt of lightning into its underbelly. The power of the attack left a gaping hole in the monster's body, the creature slumping to the ground in convulsions. Still the rumbling continued, though now to my sides! Almost on instinct I dashed backwards as two more worms erupted from the ground, one of them leaping past me while the other rammed into my shoulder with a loud screech that almost immediately became even more high-pitched. Slamming the first monster with my fist that still had the remaining lightning charge I looked towards the other one and noticed the reason for its screams – the creature rammed into my shoulder and even though my barrier protected my body I didn't cover the vibroblade which was now melting half the creature's face. Quickly turning myself towards it I raised the vibroknife upwards, jammed it right below its mouth and forcibly drew the blade down the monster's body. Some body parts and liquids escaped and a terrible odour washed over me. The creature, temporarily immobilised, fell to the ground while screeching. Quickly unsheathing the sword, I stepped towards the second monster, still recovering from my lightning punch and brought the glowing blade onto its body, force of the blow cleaving the creature in half, then immediately kneeling towards its head and stabbing it several times with the knife. Seeing that it was stopping moving I turned towards the last assailant, walked towards its ruined head and plunged the sword deep inside it. The screeching stopped, only sounds now being the sizzling of the blade burrowing into the creature and the sand and the voices from above me. Turning around I saw the people previously betting shouting towards me, some in joy while others in anger… so much for keeping my combat prowess discreet, but I am still alive so that's a start. Deciding that it couldn't go worse I gave a theatrical bow to the spectators, earning more ululations and continued onward, both blades in hands.

I may not be experienced enough to handle the sword properly but these creatures don't seem nearly as dangerous and the sword cuts through them without any problem. Besides, keeping these horrid-looking and foul-smelling horrors at bay certainly wouldn't hurt. While they didn't seem particularly heavy, as evidenced by my barrier absorbing all the charge momentum from one of them, I would still prefer to keep my distance. After some thought I sheathed the dagger away and kept my lightning at ready. I was attacked two more times before I finally entered the tomb. In my defence I thought I saw something resembling broken crates in the corner and went to investigate, which lead to two almost consecutive ambushes from the worms. To add insult to injury the crates were completely empty. To add even more insults to an already large injury, as I was about to brave the tomb, I noticed a medical station right at the entrance of the building I stepped out of!

Having now entered the tomb I relished in the comfort of the solid stone floor. To think that such a simple thing could cause so much joy! Korriban sure is a harsh place to stay in. if those worms are any indication, there is even more hostile fauna around. Quickly looking around and realising I was alone, I found the holocron in my backpack and focused on the healing power, remembering how I healed myself last time. The same surge passed through me and I could feel some scratches and frustrations go away. As I closed the backpack, I felt a bit light-headed. Remembering how the healing seemed to temporarily drain me. I sat down on the floor, closed my eyes and focused on my vow. I again remembered my desire to protect my friends, persevere for my family… and found myself staring in the eyes of my family again. This time I could see the much clearer, as their rapidly vaporising arms went towards me, mouths twisted in soundless screams. A flash of green light ripped the vision apart, bringing me back to the stone floor of the tomb of Ajunta Pall. I noticed I was holding the holocron in my hand, most likely having grabbed it instinctively during my vision. As its green light seeped into my body, a voice echoed inside my head.

"If you ever get to hear this message, it means Denkar couldn't pass up a chance to further mess with your head. I do not know whether it was his way of helping you or just setting up another trial but I will not tolerate additional interferences beyond what you already have to face. The holocron will be naught after this message, but worry not: if you used it even once, which I am certain you did by now, you will know how to replicate the healing techniques stored inside it. If not, you shall have the knowledge imprinted into you at the end of this message, and I hope you are in a safe enough of a place to survive the headache. Keep rising".

Meridina's voice filled me with more calm than even the healing power did. As the holocron's light dimmed, gradually reducing it to nothing but a grey ball with many sides I had a moment to analyse the situation. It seemed my hunch to investigate the visions of my family were correct, though I really should have done something sooner. Then again, I've spent all of my time on a ship with Dai-Ren, not much I could have done there. Still, now I understood his warning better, perhaps the apprentice was trying to warn me but without sounding too obvious. Was he testing my mind or hiding from his master? It didn't matter now. I was fully rested and ready to continue my journey, making sure to avoid intense encounters or overusing my force powers until I have reached the Academy or another safe spot. As for my power… my vow instructed me to protect those around me, yet there were none who qualified. Meridina or Dai-Ren were more than capable of protecting themselves and they weren't there. If I am to continue relying on my empathy and not succumb to rage, I need to find someone I can protect or rely upon or form any sort of bond. Harkun definitely isn't up for it, but that young girl seemed eager to become friends, I should find her when I reach the academy…

Having slowly figured out my thoughts I made sure all my possessions were on me and ventured into the tomb, down the stairs. As I was entering the ancient structure, writings and images surrounding me I saw some movement at the end of the stairway. Grabbing the sword in one hand and keeping the second hand free in case I needed to charge up a lightning bolt I went down. I saw several crates stacked against each other, almost as a makeshift barricade. Behind it were some people… people! Not worms and dressed in red armour, similar to that of Empire soldiers. Sheathing the sword, I stepped towards them, noticing they were clutching parts of their body, some of them moaning. Judging by the dents in the armour and the stench they definitely brushed against those worms. Two people still standing were facing away from me. One was dressed in dark blue robes while the other was wearing trooper armour without helmet. As they turned towards me, I saw the man's armour bear a few decorations.

"Excuse me, acolyte. Sergeant Cormun, Fifth infantry company, Korriban regiment. Can I- can I talk to you?"

"Of course, Sergeant. Pleasure to make your acquaintance".

I studied Cormun's face. The man seemed in his late thirties or early forties, clearly fatigued, with sleeping bags around his eyes and shaky voice despite maintaining stiff military posture during the conversation. I smiled at the military man and offered him a hand which he happily took, even putting up a faint smile in response to mine. His robed partner on the other hand, looking similar to the hooded figure I saw at the shuttle though with tendrils spouting where a beard would usually be, raised an eyebrow at the exchange.

"Pleased to see a friendly face here. You are one of the slaves Harkun brought in on the last transport, right? Here to prove yourself to the bloodthirsty overseers?"

"I am indeed. Do you know what happened to my fellow acolytes?"

"They went ahead through the tomb not paying us much attention, except for the red-haired girl, though she wasn't of much help. If you wish to assist us, well, here's your chance to not only show off for the overseers but start building ties to the Imperial military, as well".

"Hogging the spotlight isn't what I came here to do, rather it is assisting you and other Imperials. What do you need help with?"

"I am here commanding a hard target mission to exterminate k'lor'slugs here in this tomb. They're… horrific things. Mouths bigger than your head. I've lost three squads of good men fighting them. They come in packs- they'll… they'll just swallow a man whole".

"I believe I encountered some of these creatures outside the tomb. They are also populating it?"

"Their breeding grounds are located deep in the tomb. The damn k'lor'slugs breed so fast there's no way to wipe them out conventionally. So we started targeting their egg chambers. They went insane. We managed to get explosives to all of the egg chambers but the k'lor'slugs were all over us before we could detonate them".

"Exploding the egg chambers will kill the unborn. How will you prevent the worms that already live from finding new breeding grounds?"

"We shall regroup with reinforcements and hunt down the remaining k'lor'slugs. We also- we hope you will take care of as many of them as you can before you detonate the charges. Don't underestimate those k'lor'slugs, sir. They're… they're smarter than they look".

With that Sergeant, clearly tired already, gave me the detonation instruction and walked towards the barricades, continuing to keep watch. His robed partner, previously eyeing both me and the barricade now stared at me directly. Deciding to pay him no need unless he addresses me first, I studied the instruction. Simple enough, get to any of the bombs, set the activation code and all the bombs should receive the signal. As I was about to leave, I caught eye of one of the soldiers. The man was clutching his swollen arm, pain and resignation in his eyes. I stopped. If there ever was a time to start fulfilling my vow, it was now. I knelt down to the man who seemed to skit away from me. Paying him no need and holding him tightly I tried to recall the healing power from the holocron. Now distinctly in my head I saw three possibilities – the first one channelled the force within and around me and would treat diseases and wounds; the stronger my power, the greater the injury I can treat. The second one seemed to work over time and would gradually mend the user's body; while it wouldn't remove anything serious, it was a great way to stay rejuvenated and seemed to be the power I was using all this time. The third option was a healing wave that washed all over a person, restoring them greatly but at the expense of their longevity. Third and second options didn't seem like the best idea, so I went with the first.

Focusing on the wound I started channelling the Force around it. First, I inserted the Force inside the soldier's arm, sensing the poison that was gnawing at the flesh. Second, I carefully pulled the poison out of the body, making sure nothing from the inside would irritate the body. And finally, with the force I gently caressed the bruised flesh, speeding up the body's regenerative property to close the wound.

Several gasps could be heard behind as a stood up, checking the soldier's arm. Where there was an infection and a swelling, only a small scar remained. The soldier, having previously stared at me with fear and suspicion, was now eyeing me with awe. I turned around and quickly assessed the remaining injured squadmates. There were 3 more, two soldiers and another red-skinned individual, though this time a female. One of the soldiers was clutching his leg while the other lay motionless. The female seemed to have a plethora of bruises all over the visible parts of her body and her light armour was torn in several places, though I didn't spot any serious injury. Noticing a lightsabers on the woman's belt I decided to bring her back first, an easier task seeing that she seemingly only needed gradual restoration. The process went faster and easier than with the first soldier. I then moved over to "the leg" and used the same trick as I did on his comrade. That left the last man, the one that has stayed motionless throughout my presence. He also was in the worst shape: broken back, his friends told me.

At this point everyone at the barricade was eyeing me with a mixture of hope and curiosity. I weighed my options – this man needs my most potent healing power, one that would harm him in the long term and that would most certainly leave me drained, considering that I already started to feel dizzy. However, I could not leave him be, I had to help. Kneeling down, I called down to the Force around me, imprinted the awed faces of the soldiers surrounding their last comrade. For their sake, I must! With that, I started concentrating the Force all around me, pouring healing energy into the man like a fountain, letting the body do its job while I assisted it with my might. After several minutes of concentration, I slumped to the ground, sweat pouring down my face. The man started moving his legs, first in disbelief, then in joy. His friends quickly shushed him to avoid attracting unwanted attention, and then the whole squad looked at me. Sergeant Cormun approached me.

"My- my lord, are you alright?"

"I am exhausted from the effort but I'll live. Just give me a few minutes to rest and I'll go set the bombs-"

"Absolutely not, sir! You have saved the lives of my men, time for us to repay the debt! Men, form up. Veshta, you'll take the left flank, Gosen will be on the ri-"

"Sergeant! I did not bring your men back into shape for them to die. You said it yourself, you have lost three squads getting to their breeding chambers. Charging in with six of you is suicide. Stand down and give me time. I will deal with the bombs, or we can go together".

"I… my lord, forgive me. The sight of hope made me foolish- I have spent several days losing my troops left and right, no sign of change for the better. When you came in- I thought…"

"We will see your mission completed Sergeant, you have my word. For now, let me rest for some time. You already set up the charges, no need to rush anyway".

Cormun nodded and went to discuss the strategy of attack with the remaining soldiers. Veshta, the female Sith, was clearly disappointed the charge was delayed, perching herself up on the crates and intently scanning the surroundings. Gosen on the other hand, the robed individual, gave me a curt nod of approval before helping me to my feet.

"Do not slack on the ground, acolyte. The Dark Side favours the strong, channel your anger and hatred to rise above your weakness!"

While his advice wasn't exactly what I needed, he had a point – I needed to cement my connection to the Force through the soldiers I just saved. I looked at the cheerful faces of the men, saw them looking at me and started imprinting them in my memory, in my connection to the force. I felt empathy, joy, happiness, eagerness, admiration overflowing me. Within seconds I felt strong again, no, much stronger than I was before.

"Sergeant Cormun? I think I am ready to head out now".

"You certainly look great, my lord! I shall order the men to assemble-"

"Actually, I think it is best I go in alone. I already handled those worms with little issue, and moving alone I'll be able to sneak past most of them easier. Besides, you are now protecting the exit from the tomb, it is a good idea to keep it safe in case more acolytes or troops decide to arrive".

"Very well, my lord. Good luck blowing up the eggs!"

As I moved out of the barricade, I caught Veshta staring daggers at me. Looks like she really wanted to fight something… quickly scanning the surroundings I noticed another one of the worms skulking behind the rocks. Catching the Sith's attention and giving her a wink, I pulled the k'lor'slug towards me. The creature screeched as it flew through the air and slumped at my feet. Veshta gave almost a child-like smile and giggle before plunging at the monster with her lightsaber. I saw more slugs emerge from the tunnel to the right and head my way. With a precise lightning bolt, I was able to take out two at the same time, before noticing even larger forms, easily two or three times the size of the ones I've fought making their ways towards the barricade.

If there was ever a perfect example of bantha crap, it was right here and now. To my relief they didn't seem to resist my lightning too much, falling next to their kin. Behind me I heard blaster fire and more zaps as the Imperial troops and Sith started laying waste upon the enemy, creating a distraction for me to sneak past the slugs. Giving a last look and seeing that the soldiers were perfectly fine holding the line, I ran down into the tomb.

Several minutes later I found one of the egg chambers. The path was getting progressively slimier and I noticed several pieces of Imperial uniform, weaponry and belts lying around the floor, often in the pools of blood. I tried collecting as much useful items such as stim packs to bring them back to Sergeant Cormun. After my bag got pretty filled up and I was carrying several blasters on my body, I had to stop collecting the gear and move inside the nest. Though seemingly empty I noticed movement amidst the piles of slime. Sergeant was right, they definitely were smarter than they looked. Had I not heeded his warning I would have walked right into their ambush. This however presented a problem – I could deal with all of the slugs across the room, but I also couldn't set off the bombs… unless? I gently reached out with my arm and pulled one of the bombs towards me. Perfect! Now all I needed to do was insert the code and the rest of the bombs will catch the activation… but what if I could do something else instead?

These slugs were clearly a menace to public society. Yet I have had plenty of experience taming wild creatures on the farms; if I could use the Force to further influence these monsters, they could become a valuable asset to the Empire? Tentatively I reached out with the force, trying to gauge the creature's mind. I was faced with a blind rage, unending hunger and vicious hatred. No, even if these creatures can be tamed, I don't have the skills or time required, and Sergeant was depending on me, as well as his subordinates. I quickly inserted the combination into the bombs, pushed them back into the chamber and set of running. Behind me screeching started, only to be silenced by a shattering blast. Grateful for the tomb's may corners shielding me from the blast I darted further upwards until I reached the barricade. Several slug corpses were seen lying around and Veshta was gleefully hacking at the largest slug left, oblivious to a smaller beast creeping up behind her. I quickly threw my dagger into the creature. While the wound didn't kill it, the screeching alerted the Sith woman to the danger. Quickly dashing sideways she tossed her lightsaber around her, cleaving through both foes, then grinning at me victoriously.

"It was a glorious battle, acolyte! Glad to see you still live!"

"The feeling is mutual. Where's-"

"My lord!"

Sergeant Cormun stepped from behind the barricade. Tired as he looked, his eyes were now shining with joy.

"I heard the explosions when you set off the charges. Outstanding, my lord!"

"Glad to be of help. I took as much gear from your fallen soldiers as I could. I hope you can still find use for it".

"Thank you, my lord. We shall see what gear is still usable and will re-distribute it among ourselves and the reinforcements".

"If I may, Sergeant? I wouldn't be opposed to grabbing some items for myself, mostly stim packs. There is a medical droid right outside the tomb, you won't have trouble re-supplying and I need to head further down the tomb-"

"My lord, you've helped my men and made sure our mission was a success. We shall provide you with whatever you need".

"Could you tell me more about Korriban, the local monsters and the tomb then?"

Cormun, Veshta and Gosen were answering my questions while the troops helped me with my gear. In addition to stim packs that could provide a healing opportunity in case I needed to use my Force power for other things I also received military greaves and armoured pants. While I wanted to leave my hands and chest relatively light to channel the Force easier, my legs were soaked with slime, mostly due to the clothing I was provided not repelling the outside sources well. At the end of the procedure I had a much better idea of the tomb, mainly its history and approximate location of Spindrall, as well as an understanding of what the k'lor'slugs are, though the latter part was more than covered during the last hour.

"Anything else you wish to know, my lord?"

"That will be all. Thank you for your help, Sergeant".

"No, my lord, thank _you_ for not leaving us in our hour of need. I'll make sure to inform other regiment commanders of your deed, expect a warm welcome amongst imperial troops wherever you go on Korriban. We shall leave the tomb, resupply and regroup and then start securing it again. Beware of grave robbers up ahead if you wish to continue alone. Best of luck to you, my lord".


	4. Part 1 - trial of blood

Sergeant Cormun saluted me and went to the barricade, disassembling it and gathering up the boxes. Veshta gave me a coy look, planted a quick smooch on my cheek and went towards the soldiers, too, leaving Gesen and me alone. The Sith was eager to learn of my Force prowess and upon hearing I couldn't master lightning all that well suggested I imbue my barrier with it. A few trial and errors later my shield was now pulsing with electric bursts. Anything or anyone foolish enough to come into contact with it would definitely have a bad day! Gesen kept on giving me odd looks during our conversation. He has no doubt felt I wasn't using anger or hatred like he suggested, but didn't seem too eager to press the subject, and frankly I was glad I didn't have to explain something I barely understood myself. With the talk mostly over and the soldiers still packing up I decided to go further ahead, this time to the left corridor of the tomb.

Walking down the empty hallway I noticed a metallic shine among a greenish liquid. A datapad, badly damaged but still functional. Minding the liquid that also housed a slowly melting skeleton I flipped it open. Mercenaries raiding tombs, stolen artefacts, contact Sergeant Rikel at the medical centre once the job is complete. Medical centre must be up on the other side of the tomb then. Packing the datapad I started moving along the wall of the hallway, past the ever-increasing number of crates. Up ahead was an entire barricade made of crates, with dim lights on the other side. Kneeling down I attempted to sense anything through the Force and was surprised for my pulse to reach out much farther than usual. It appeared creating a link with the soldiers greatly amplified my potential, even more reason to seek out more allies.

Up ahead was a total of ten individuals: three were at the barricades and judging by the hostile emotions they were giving off, they have noticed me and were quietly preparing an ambush, not surprising given my bright red gear and rather heavy and clanky military armour. Two more were further away and seemed to be chatting while two more stood even further to the left, seemingly on the ceiling. To the right of the second group and furthest away from me were three last individuals.

While I wanted to sit back and analyse the situation, time was the luxury I couldn't afford: three of them were already aware of my position and I didn't know the layout of the place anyway. I gathered up the Force and pushed at two of the crates, simultaneously breaking into a sprint, aiming at the newly formed opening next to the third foe. Both crates slammed into the first two marauders, pinning both to the ground. As I slid over the barricade, I noticed the third man start to panic, trying to bring up his blaster rifle, all too slow. Pushing him into the pillar behind his back, I leaped towards him and landed a punch square in his face. Went too hard and the bastard had an exceptionally tough face, hand will hurt for a while. But that wasn't relevant at the moment. First three marauders were knocked out cold.

Glancing to my left in the approximate direction of the two foes on the ceiling I saw them sliding down on the ropes, about to land. Thinking to deal with the closer enemies first I perked behind several crates after the barricades and saw the other two marauders yell something into a hallway. Splendid, let them be distracted for the time! Charging up a lightning bolt in each fist I trust out my arms, aiming to take out the two rope climbers. Having missed first, I slightly adjusted the trajectory of the bolts and hit the targets. Dropping the charge as soon as I connected to avoid killing the men, I turned to face the last two assailants in the room: it appeared the other three looters were down the stairs in another chamber.

One of the marauders was pulling out a blaster, aiming in my direction. Raising up the barrier I yanked at him with my hand, pulling the now screaming man into the air. Though he managed to fire his weapon once, the blaster bolt was absorbed almost completely by my shield, leaving a small char on the shirt. As the man was flying through the air towards me, I motioned with my other hand upwards, intercepting his brief but eventful flight with one of the crates. Having made sure the ruffian was properly acquainted with the manuals on the side of the crate now, I turned towards the last attacker.

The man, clearly enraged and scared at the speed of the assault, was now charging me, both hands on a rather large vibroblade. Reckoning that my barrier was still up I decided this was a good enough time to test the power Gesen showed me. Feigning surprise and fear I stumbled back, seemingly trying and failing to pull out my own sword. As the man was about to land the hit, I jerked my body into the trajectory of his attack, channelling lightning across my shield. The man, most likely having have noticed the change in my face and movement, tried to stop the attack at the last second but was too late, the momentum of his own swing working against him. For a moment he went alight with an electric burst and was then knocked off his feet a few meters away from me.

I inhaled deeply, satisfied with the result. Within mere seconds I have knocked out seven attackers. Should be more careful next time with my facial expression, had the man been more experienced he would have avoided the bait. Then again, the group was clearly not very experienced fighters and at that point I had lightning, telekinesis and even my own weapons to go toe to toe with the looter. Overall, good work, but not over yet.

Hearing footsteps from the corner of the large room I was now standing in, I started force-pulling the unconscious looters into one pile where they could be easily seen, noting that none of them were too seriously injured; the sods I connected with the crates had bruises but were otherwise fine, the ones who came into contact with my lightning were looking worse for wear but were otherwise still breathing. One guy was even semi-conscious, the same bastard I hurt my hand against trying to knock his thick head out! Minus the durable bastard all went as intended.

Having now heard the footsteps getting closer, I stepped somewhat behind the crate pile. Entering the room were two individuals, Zabrak and Twi'lek. Interesting, it appears the third man was left behind. Could he be injured or be the leader? As they were scanning the room, I quickly sensed the area through the force, noting beforehand a similar barricade structure on the other end of the room. Good, looks like these ten are the only enemies around. The third individual appeared to be pacing, not going up. Safe to assume he is the leader then.

The two looters finally noticed their associates piled up and rushed towards them. Quickly stepping from behind the crates I charged lightning up my hand and pointed it at the seven grave robbers. I only could target one at a time but lightning usually worked differently with Sith and there was no way the looters would even know otherwise.

"Your friends are alive for now. Drop your weapons, you cannot win".

"There is only one of you, what exactly are you going to do?!"

"Seeing that seven of you are now lying down, taking down two more shouldn't be an issue".

"There's more of us down there, you are finished!"

"The only person down there is your leader. He is currently pacing, no, walking upstairs. Please stay down, sir, I will not hurt your men unless they act stupid!"

"Wh- why do you even think we care about our men?"

"Even a Sarlacc could see you reacting with worry to seeing your friends lying down, and your facial expressions when I pointed my lightning at them was more evidence. Finally, I sense your fear, your worry and despair. Yes, your thoughts are known to me. You cannot win and I do not wish to have an unnecessary bloodbath on my hands. Weapons down. Now".

As the Zabrak female engaged me in the conversation, the Twi'lek man's eyes were darting around the room, trying to look at me, the bodies, his partner and the staircase simultaneously. The looter's initial bravado gradually died down as I pressed on the verbal assault. While I couldn't read her thoughts exactly, reading emotions was a much easier task. As the tomb raiders left their weapons and walked towards me, I heard heavy footsteps from the staircase. Walking into the room was a giant of a man, holding a massive vibroblade in one hand, blaster rifle slung over the shoulder. The two looters seemed to look more jovial at his arrival and the unconscious pile started to slowly move. Not good.

Remembering my old days at the farm, I walked towards the brute. As kids we knew the best way to pacify a rival group or gang was by finding and quickly humiliating their leader. As I was getting close I suddenly yanked the man's legs down with the Force, immediately stepping in and headbutting him across the face. I briefly brought up the barrier so as to avoid yet another sore spot on the body but the man, too shocked at losing footing, was too preoccupied to notice. With a resounding crack he went down, blood pouring down his face. That's going to be a broken nose.

Hearing gasps from the two looters I stared the man down, slightly coating my arms in lightning. He may be big but I had the power. He stared at me for a few moments before slightly chuckling and breaking away the gaze and letting go of the weapon.

"Heh, you're one crazy son of a bitch, you know that?"

"Glad you could see reason".

"Beating people up counts as reason these days, eh?"

"When the alternative is electrocution? Yes".

The man, no longer eager to pick a fight, quickly scrambled to his feet. As he was getting up, his eyes widened and he pointed behind my back, muttering something. Thinking it to be a trick I dashed around him so as to keep all the looters within eyesight, cursing myself silently for dropping my Force sense. Should keep it up more often, good for endurance training anyway. As I focused on the barricade, a red-skinned woman somersaulted up towards the looter pile…

"Veshta, don't!"

"What, why?!"

"We need them alive. Where is Sergeant Cormun?"

"You are no fun at all!"

"What? Ah, fine. Sergeant. Sergeant Cormun, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear, my lord. We are moving behind the crates".

"Hop over, I have a few prisoners. We can all benefit from their presence".

At this everyone jerked their heads in my direction. Imperials started exchanging puzzled looks, looters were voicing their scepticism of the idea. I raised a hand, calling everyone to attention.

"Sergeant, these people have been scavenging around the place for a long time, judging by the dust layers on some crates. They will be a great help in both scouting out this tomb and they can reinforce your troops before fresh soldiers arrive, not that they have much place to run now. Besides, they are risking their lives excavating relics for someone other than the Empire, surely they will tell who their benefactor is in exchange for some benefits?"

"While not entirely a bad idea, these people-"

"If we offer to help you, will you promise to let us work in the tombs and not kill us?"

The brute was looking at both me and Sergeant, eyes filled with fear. It was clear by now their small gang was more than outmatched and Veshta was doing everything in her power to give withering looks to the looters, seeing that I was mostly ignoring her. Marauders, having completely dropped their remnants of bravado and scepticism were fully voicing their support of my idea. Hardly surprising, considering the alternative was most likely going to be death and I sure wasn't going to go out of my way to protect thieves from punishment should they not comply. Make sure they have a chance? Certainly. Put my neck out for them if they act stupid? Absolutely not. The brute in the meantime continued.

"Before we were utterly trashed by you, we had a group of acolytes pass by. Too large for us to attack, so we hid. Except Shena there, poor Twi'lek sod got his leg munched on by one of the k'lor'slugs. One of the acolytes, a ginger girl, gave him a stim pack and told to go and help the Empire with digging up the relics. Sounded a bit naïve but we were already cut off from our allies and thus were considering the option".

Sensing through the Force that the man was sincere, I and Gesen nodded to Cormun, confirming the truth of man's words. Sergeant, after thinking to himself for a while, agreed to the tomb raiders joining him with helping eradicating the rest of the k'lor'slugs from the tomb and then gathering artefacts if needed. Though he insisted I accompany him and his men through the tomb. Frankly I didn't mind at all, since there was no way I could carry all these crates by myself. Maybe levitate them with the Force, but even then that's a lot of crates.

In the meantime, Shena, the Twi'lek man I saw earlier, was filling us in on his mission. Apparently, a slave group sent to work the tombs, particularly the tomb of Tulak Hord, went against the wishes of their masters and staged the revolt. They would sabotage supplies for acolytes and troops stationed in and around the tombs, hack droids and convince soldiers and Sith apprentices to go rogue and help them. Apparently the Sith lords overseeing the tombs and training didn't do much to stop it. According to Veshta, the Lords simply viewed the slave rebellion as another way to test the mettle of their acolytes. Not sure if that was efficiently ruthless or simply foolish, especially if the slaves apparently converted more students to their cause and clearly were a force to be reckoned with. I should look into it more once I reach the Academy.

As Shena continued explaining to Gesen how many looters there were originally and how most of them died, I decided to move up ahead. Gesturing to Cormun and explaining that I will seek Sprindrall and rendezvous with his group right after and receiving affirmation, I moved onwards. The tomb was now at the crossroads. Ignoring the first turn I arrived at three possible paths. The road straight ahead seemed littered with what appeared to be statues, broken in various ways. They looked rather recent and too realistic to be mere works of art… I turned to the road on the left and sensed a pull from the chamber. This seemed to be the place to go to.

As I walked into the alcove and turned around the corner, I saw a large, elongated room with a higher-level platform at the end, stairs leading to it. Before it was an opening with a red circle drawn on the floor. Along the walls stood several training dummies, which several robed figures were now using for fighting. Some were jabbing at them with the vibroblades while others sent cascades of lightning at them. Feeling a bit jealous of the ease with which those people controlled their lightning, I walked up the stairs.

At the end stood two ornamental pillars. Two brightly lit crystals, polished to resemble rods, were mounted inside the structure. At the end of the room stood an ancient-looking sarcophagus. Kneeling in front of it was a robed and hooded figure. The robes were old and tattered. The figure paid me no heed.

I decided to kneel next to the mysterious individual, closed my eyes and tried to focus on the burial place in front of me. I sensed great power, turmoil, conflict, regret. Images shone before my, too fast to pick out the details. Sense of pride and loss, challenge and apathy went through me.

I opened my eyes and stood up, coughing, trembling, bringing the emotions under my control once again. It was then that I noticed the figure looking at me. Old, weathered face, grey hair and beard, blood-red irises. The man stared at me with power that even the pathetic state of the his clothes couldn't tarnish.

"Slave. Welcome to my humble hole. You are here for your trial, yes? Learn the ways of the Sith from the doddering old man in a tomb? And hopefully to return to your master, with the mark of my approval".

The man reminded me somewhat of Denkar, minus the sweetness. Despite him degrading himself I sensed he had power within him. I bowed, maintaining eye contact and letting the Force coat off my hands and fingers.

"Tell me my trial, Lord Sprindrall. I came here to become Sith".

Sprindrall eyed me up, visibly satisfied with my respect of authority and the display of power.

"We shall see if you will. But before I answer either way, you must pass a trial of blood. Survive, and I will teach you what I know".

Old man knelt back to face the sarcophagus, speaking. Confused, I walked downstairs. Perhaps the training people will provide an answer? As I walked inside the circle, all the people training stopped and looked at me. Six of them, eyes lighting up with evil intent. As I was about to speak up, two of them charged me, swords in hands. The rest followed shortly after.

At the beginning I was simply tossing the assailants aside. My barrier shrugged off both swords and rather weak lightning with no effect, and the attackers were rather light for their apparent build. I tried reasoning with them, telling them to stand down. Nothing. The attackers kept on pushing, even carving up or zapping each other if their friends got in the way. I was disgusted with their tactics, and slowly a burning anger started rising within me. Why can't they stop attacking, when it is obvious they cannot win?! I started striking back, bolts of lightning burning through their bodies, vibroweapons hacking at all around me. The last attacker charged at me with the sword, channelling lightning through the blade. Responding in kind, I brought up my shielded fist coated in lightning and slammed it into the man's chin.

The result of the attack was a sight to behold: the sheer force of the blow ripped the man's head off. As it flew through the air and landed on the ground a few meters away from me, blood mist covering my eyes slowly cleared. Breathing heavily, I looked around the room.

Out of the six attackers, one ended up being killed by his own. The rest… excluding the now headless corpse, half-squished object staring at me from a distance, three more figures lay scorched on the ground, intensity of the burn marks indicating it was my work. The last assailant had my blade protruding out of his chest.

I knelt to the floor, feeling dizzy. How did it even happen? I remembered getting annoyed, then a red mist covered my eyes and I wanted to be left alone, not getting buggered by fools. Fantastic, not even the first day in the Academy and I already went on a killing spree! I wasn't sure what was worse – this being the first time I ever killed a humanoid, the amount of dead individuals, their gruesome demise or everything together. How have I failed so bad?!

Amidst my turmoil, I remembered Meridina's words. Remember the fallen… looks like she was right, I wouldn't be able to save them all. At the very least there are now six acolytes who will never achieve anything because of me. Can I prevent more deaths? I can definitely try. Forcing myself to look at the slaughter, I remembered each and every face, committing them to memory. They have fallen here, but I will carry them with me, as a reminder not to give into my weaker temptations, to persevere, to overcome.

As I composed myself, the inner turmoil no longer so big as to affect my speech and appearance, I ascended the stairs. Still facing with his back to me, Sprindrall spoke.

"Excellent. These former acolytes wanted nothing more than to earn their second chance for glory by killing you and taking your place. But your desire proved stronger, and their blood became the mantle of your victory. Well done- but you are not Sith yet".

I felt the anger slowly creeping up again. These people, clearly weak and malnourished, were supposed to compete against acolytes like me?! What a sick joke. And I didn't desire their deaths, I wanted to stop the fighting. Before I could voice any of my thoughts, however, Sprindrall stood up, faced me and spoke again. This time the words resonated with me, echoing against the walls, inside my head.

Peace is a lie, there is only passion

Through passion, I gain strength

Through strength, I gain power

Through power, I gain victory

Through victory, my chains are broken

The Force shall free me

The Sith Code, the guiding power of the Sith Order. Now I understood what Meridina, Denkar and Paan meant, what was guiding them on their paths. The power of your emotions that channels your Force power, the one I was using: compassion, empathy, anger… yes, even anger. It would do be no good trying to forget today's event, for then I would simply repeat it later. Yes, anger can fuel my power, too. However, it is dangerous to let it guide me. However, same can be said for any emotion. My passions should be what fuels my strength, not what controls me. Then, as I master my passions and channel them into power, then can I achieve victory, fulfil my vow.

Power overflowed within me at the revelation, pieces of it previously mashed together inside me now arranged into a perfect mosaic. My desire to protect and help people like Sergeant Corum and his men, my remembrance of my family and the fallen six acolytes. Who knows how many more things I shall discover on my journey? For now, I felt whole, complete, at ease with myself and my power and the Force around me.

Sprindrall and I locked eyes.

"This is the Sith Code. Commit it to your heart and your will have the strength to protect those dear to you. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I do".

"Excellent. Then go. Return to Harkun. And remember – Harkun may raise his fist to strike at you or others, but it is Lord Zash who determines where the fist will land… or you, if you are strong enough. Stay vigilant, especially when looking out for the green orbs".

I nodded and turned to leave, somewhat perplexed by the man's last words, committing them to memory. As I was about to descend the stairs, a thought stroke me harder than any lightning bolt ever could – Spindrall didn't speak of hatred or anger like I was expecting, like other Sith, even encouraging me to protect those I cared about. What was going on?

I slowly turned to face the old man, barrier and sense active, ready for anything. Sprindrall faced me from above, his old face breaking into a warm smile. I saw through his emotions clear as day. There was no deception… only encouragement.

"…What were their names? The former acolytes I have killed?"

"Does it truly matter for you? You have committed their faces into your heart, the names are no longer relevant. Know that there was nothing else you could have done in that situation, and your behaviour afterwards was excellent. I thought this Empire was too old to change, but with you… I hope you will become Zash's apprentice, acolyte. You will see not all Sith are monsters. After all, their creator did not like seeing what the Sith became…"

"Then I look forward to meeting Lord Zash".

"As you should. Now, go! Leave me to my rest".

As Sprindrall finished speaking, his eyes left mine and noticed my barrier for seemingly the first time. The old man raised an eyebrow, then grinned mischievously… oh no. Before I could react, blast of lightning crashed into the barrier. I braced for impact, ready to fall on the ground… but instead I didn't move.

The barrier was torn to shreds with the attack, but I was left completely unscathed! A small whistle and a nod of approval escaped Spindrall before he motioned for me to leave. That was certainly a memorable way to say goodbye. Descending down the stairs past the fallen acolytes I now carried inside my heart, I left the burial chamber of Ajunta Pall, the first Sith.

Walking back at the crossroads I heard familiar voices. Hailing the Imperial troopers, Sith and former marauders I sped up and turned around the corner, to see sixteen people stare at me with mixed expressions. Gesen happily exclaimed and went to demand money from Veshta who stared at me in mild disbelief. Sergeant Cormun smiled and nodded at me with approval, while his men started shouting "hoorah". The former looters were less enthusiastic but nevertheless cheered.

"Congratulations are in order, my lord. Tell us, if that's fine… what happened back there?"

"Trial of blood".

"…Oh".

"There were several former acolytes together with Spindrall. In order to proceed I had to kill them all… their memories are now with me".

"I won't presume to understand Sith traditions, my lord… but did you pass the trial?"

"Yes, Sergeant Cormun, I did".

At those words Veshta, who was busy arguing about some "technicalities" of her bet with Gesen, looked rather sad and handed credits to the robed Sith without a single word. As the group started packing up, taking the crates and me joining in, Red-skinned woman approached me.

"Just so you know, your silly decision to come out of there alive and as an acolyte has cost me 15 credits".

"… I apologise?"

"Hmph. You are lucky people find you useful".

"If that money was so important to you, allow me to compensate it… is there a local restaurant in the Academy or nearby?"

"Yes, called army kitchen, only slightly less bland that Academy cantina… though the Academy has a decent bar".

"Just to be clear, I am only compensating your poor decisions in life, nothing else".

"First you ask a girl out for drinks and then you proclaim there's no date?"

"Date? In your dreams, this is me merely helping a friend in need".

As the conversation progressed, Veshta seemed to go back to a more cheerful mood. Though the last words were said with mock hurt and seriousness, it was clear she no longer viewed me in an all too negative light, at least for now.

During the next two hours, we moved over the military crates, uncovered a hidden cache in one of the abandoned chambers and retrieved the artefacts the looters hid in a chamber up ahead. Having been promised their lives wouldn't be taken and they, in light of their current help, would be employed by the Imperial military directly to investigate the tombs so long as they obeyed the orders, looters were all to eager to help out, showing small hidden caches, explaining some of the writings and images on the walls… during one of the explanations I first heard the term "pureblood", a race native to Korriban that was viewed by the Sith Order in high regard. With the descriptions being red skin and weird fleshy appendages, it seemed like both of the Sith in our group belonged to this race.

Both of them asked me questions about my trial. Not willing to share the exact nature of my power just yet, I did recount Sprindrall's parting gift. Gesen seemed to ponder on the situation for a while before whispering something to Veshta. The Pureblood girl nodded and raised up a barrier similar to mine, though smaller but more refined. Is the more exact shape compared to my murkier texture more efficient despite the size? Before I could entertain the thought, Gesen channelled lightning into his colleague. Some of the bolts hit the barrier directly, while the rest seemingly glided off. Gesen turned to face me.

"That is how a Force Barrier is meant to work, you deflect the incoming power away from you. The fact that you could take a direct hit from a Dark Lord fully is impressive to say the least. However, if you learn to use the technique properly… well, with enough training it would be a miracle if any Force Lightning of even Sith Lords would take you down. Don't get your hopes up, Darths will still tear you down without breaking a sweat, but you aren't planning on crossing them yet, are you?"

I shook my head and studied Veshta's barrier structure, much to her feigned embarrassment. Ignoring the distracting Pureblood, I summoned up my shield and started shaping it. The cloudy, shapeless form slowly gave way to something resembling armour. It wasn't as clear as that of Veshta but it was a start. Out of curiosity I channelled lightning through the barrier. Seeing that it still worked as intended I looked at Gesen.

The Sith immediately threw streams of lightning at me. I immediately noticed the effect – at least half of his attacks simply bounced off my protection, slamming into a wall behind me. Not exactly an optimal result if there is someone standing behind me, unless they are directly behind me, but when I am the only person present? I couldn't have asked for a better power.

Satisfied with the result, Gesen stopped the attack. It was also at this time I realised I wasn't even remotely tired. How peculiar – only this morning it took merely three fights to completely drain me for the day. And here I am mere hours later, having passed the initiation trial and improving my technique like it was nothing! I thought back on the Sith Code. My power stems from my passion; before this day I was simply trained to channel the Force without much understanding. After getting bonded with people and fully understanding the source of my power, it seemed I was now much stronger. Amazing, and to think this progress only took less than a day!

As we continued moving through the tomb, we saw several k'lor'slug corpses mixed with humanoid-looking ones. Judging by their clothing these were the looters, though there were also Imperial soldiers in the mix. The field of battle was rather large, occupying at least two chambers, but we didn't find any survivors. The former tomb raiders said nothing as we passed by their former comrades, though the sight clearly left an impression on them. I was hoping they wouldn't betray the Empire.

Finally, we saw a metallic staircase leading upwards. Halfway up metal gave way to old stone. I heard many voices from around the corner. Running up the stairs and turning around, I saw a metallic bridge, connecting the tomb to a large open area. In the middle of it stood a tall, imposing building.

Shaped as a pyramid and made of ancient stone, it resonated power, cold and unforgiving. Multiple figures were climbing up its stairs, several more were walking around the base. Cormun ran ahead me and started waving and shouting towards some of the soldiers up ahead. With extra backup we managed to deliver the crates, artefacts and our mildly exhausted bodies to the military camp next to the entrance of the Academy. The man walking towards us identified himself as Sergeant Rikel, tall and muscular man in Imperial armour. Recognising the name, I handed the datapad to him.

"Ah, the artifacts. Then I assume my men are dead".

"Judging by the remains I found, k'lor'slugs got to them. I am sorry".

"Their loss is your gain I suppose. What is the matter with the looters?"

"They helped us retrieve the artefacts and navigated Sergeant Cormun's men out of the tomb. They are serving the Empire".

"Optimistic words, but word of an acolyte is not enough to cleanse their guilt".

"What about word of a military commander?"

"And a Sith?"

"Make that two Sith".

Cormun, Gesen and Veshta stepped forward. Rikel looked rather shocked at how the events were turning out. Before he could gather his wits, Cormun pressed the advantage.

"And without this "acolyte" my men would most likely be k'lor'slug lunch by now. Now, the tomb is almost completely clear of their infestation and we can send research teams and acolytes without too much risk. In addition, the former looters have helped us navigate the tomb beyond even our knowledge. They are fully committed to our cause and will bolster our search efforts. I and my colleagues vouch for these men. Besides, this acolyte is to become apprentice of Lord Zash, I am sure you've heard the name, Sergeant Rikel".

"I… see. Very well, make yourselves comfortable in our camp for the night. Acolyte, I apologise for disrespecting you earlier. If these men prove to be of use- I mean, you are welcome in our camp at all time!"

"I do not intend to steal your soldiers' beds, Sergeant. Don't worry, these men will serve the Empire well, just as I will. If you need any help, do not hesitate to call me".

During Cormun's speech I maintained eye contact with Rikel, not intensifying the gaze but neither dropping the stare. After Rikel's apology I reassured the man and offered the handshake, which the flustered man took, clearly happy the situation was resolved in a civil manner. Former looters, seeing that nothing threatened their lives now, happily claimed some beds. Good, even more people I helped protect, now serving the cause of the Empire. Seeing that everyone was now socialising and discussing the events of the past day, I quietly left the camp and took the first step on the stone stairs of the Sith Academy.


	5. Part 1 - Kory

Ascending the stairs was a difficult process: old and large steps went several dozens of meters up. While the ascension offered a sense of grandeur and importance, I would much rather get inside the building as soon as possible. After the trial and all the battles, as well as crate transportation the exhaustion was creeping in with every step I took.

All around me more figures walked up and down the stairs. Most of them wore simple gear, similar to the clothing I was issued, but a few individuals looked more peculiar. I was gathering looks as I walked past. Initially not understanding what was happening I took a look at my clothing and found my answer: my shirt was covered in a mixture of slime and blood, several gashes all across it. The military armoured pants only had the slime and dirt but looking around I noticed nobody was wearing such heavy gear. Yeah, I stood out as a sore thumb. On second thought, I wasn't that bothered with my look: pants proved to be more than useful and I got my fair share of dirt working the mines. One trip to the shower should fix that no problem.

Having finally reached the top, I turned around to take a look at the surroundings. The Academy was positioned on top of the ravine; at the bottom lay the tomb of Ajunta Pall I just exited. To the sides were more ancient structures. Wondering if I'll get to explore those structures as well, I entered the Academy.

The entrance split into two hallways, seemingly entrance and exit. As I was about to follow the entrance pathway a figure blocked my path. A man, dressed in a gaudy robe with various ornaments and rather sizeable shoulder pads.

"Assistant Overseer Markan. You must be the one of the slave acolytes. Pretty easy to see why Overseer Harkun was horrified. Regardless, Lord Zash has made it clear all new acolytes must learn martial skills as well as face their trials. Though why anyone thinks you can be taught is beyond me".

The man's snide comments and glances at my outfit were getting on my nerves. As if it is strange to come from a dusty, enemy-filled tomb looking dirty! Or was there a special Force ability that cleaned and mended your clothes I was supposed to know?! Suppressing the ever-growing desire to give the man a short trip up the ceiling, I decided not to antagonise Markan more than necessary.

"Where will I learn martial skills then?"

"You will find the instructors in the Academy's archives. Hurry, and try not to embarrass your betters".

"Overseer Harkun is expecting me first".

"Overseer Harkun needs to attend to his business first. You and other slaves have a week to accommodate yourselves in the Academy and try to learn the basics of martial combat. I fully expect you all to die within this week, will save Harkun a fair bit of trouble".

"…which way are the showers?"

Markan laughed at the question and exited the building. Arrogant bastard. Walking inside the Academy I started to calm down… why did I even find him so bothersome? It wasn't anything I haven't received while being a slave. Must be the exhaustion… and hunger. Intent to find the shower and food first so as to look presentable to the instructor I turned around the corner and saw a short hallway leading into a large room, a mysterious obelisk in the centre. Standing in the hallway were two individuals, red cloaks and ornamental armour adorning the bodies. As I walked inside the hallway, they knelt.

Surprised at the reaction I approached the guards and asked for directions. They were the Dark Honour Guard, meant to guard the entrance to the Academy. They were quite helpful with explaining Academy's layout: the ground floor had the cantina, dormitories, prison block and Overseer offices as well as a few laboratory-esque chambers. Second floor housed the archives and the training rooms. Third floor had the Dark Council chambers, rulers of the Empire. Entering them without permission was strictly forbidden.

Thanking the guards for the information I decided to first head to the dorms. Guards at the entry to the facilities checked my name and biometrics and after confirming I was indeed one of the acolytes let me pass. I was quickly assigned a bunk, a drawer and a new set of clothes as well as 50 credits of pocket change, monthly allowance for the acolytes. It now made sense why Veshta was so upset about losing 15 credits. Half an hour later I stepped out of the shower, feeling rather refreshed. Taking a stroll through the dorm area I was now ready to see the instructors-

"There you are!"

Turning to the direction of the voice I saw Gesen and Veshta, walking towards me with a larger group that looked familiar… the other acolytes in Harkun's group! I quickened my pace and walked over towards them.

"You shouldn't have left without any notice!"

"Sorry, Veshta, I saw everyone accommodating just fine and decided to take care of my own business. How did you find me anyway?"

"Easy enough! We followed the stench of k'lor'slug!"

"Yeah, yeah, I was dirty after exploring the tomb, imagine my surprise. You are not looking any better with your ragged coat".

"But unlike you, I am pretty!"

"Whatever you say".

As the two Sith and I exchanged pleasantries, the acolytes kept their distance. Noting their fearful gazes towards Veshta, perhaps the short-tempered Sith scared them into helping her find me? Though it is as likely she wasn't too pleased with them leaving her and Cormun's troops in the tombs without offering help. Eventually Kory came along and brought us to the cantina. Judging by the prizes on the drinks those 50 credits will disappear rather quickly.

As we found a place to sit and enjoy the evening, Kory, still uncharacteristically optimistic for such a dangerous and gloomy place, introduced the rest of the acolytes to us. Balek and Wydr were twins, Gerr was a soft-spoken man and Niloc was smaller than either of the three men but quite energetic. Apparently, all of them were slaves in the same camp and when it was found out they were force-sensitive they were boarded on the ship to Korriban, as per the Imperial law.

I introduced Veshta and Gesen to the group. The initial tension as the Sith ever-so-subtly reminded the acolytes of being left in the tomb soon disappeared as more drinks were brought in. Having decided that they were now alive and there was little point in starting a fight in the academy, let alone killing acolytes, the event was left in the past. We then brought up the week given to us. I was eager to resume and further my Force power, with Kory volunteering to join, eager to "see the new face in action". The rest of the acolytes claimed they'd train by themselves and soon left the bar. Gesen, eager to help, proposed an idea: his master, Lord Samus, was one of the academy trainers. He would ask his master to allocate one of the training rooms to us. Gesen and Veshta were eager to practice and with the tomb of Ajunta Pall now relatively secure they were temporarily off duty. The local Imperial regiment would have minor problems to solve, but they weren't needed otherwise. Seeing that the arrangement would help me greatly, I agreed.

Throughout the next week we would train our Force powers and spar in the chamber. Feeling now much stronger I could take on Veshta or Gesen with little effort, though fighting two of them at once proved much more difficult. Having now seen my fighting style they were quick to adapt and exploit my lack of offensive powers. Most of the time they wouldn't do me much harm but neither could I dent their defences. To this end I started practicing new powers.

Having recalled Dai-Ren claim that I could "vanish", I looked into the archives and found the ability: coating oneself in the Force, a Sith would be completely undetectable if the technique was performed correctly. Though try as hard as I might, I couldn't master it fast. After several days of training the best I could do was turning a part of my body invisible or make myself look very murky. Maybe from a great distance on a very misty day I could fool a particularly drunk guard, but for now it wasn't an option.

Noting that most of the powers were based on lightning, much to my displeasure, I had to turn to more unorthodox means of combat. Noting a shockwave-like ability that, when mastered, would also disrupt enemy's barriers and other Force auras I started practicing it. By the end of the week I had enough experience to conjure it up almost instantaneously if I merely wanted to knock back the targets around me. If I wanted a more disruptive blast, I had to charge up the power for a few seconds, something not easily done within battle but could be managed under the right circumstances.

Looking further into the arsenal of Force tricks Academy books had to offer, I noted techniques related to mind control, such as persuasion, domination or inducing nightmares into one's psyche. While rather ruthless, the powers were a good alternative if I wanted to quickly suppress opposition without resorting to actual combat. Additionally, I would train to further empower my defences by enhancing my barrier and training to resist mental attacks. The culmination of the training was the ability to not only coat myself in protective energy but up to one other person!

When I wasn't training my ass off, I would visit the Imperial camp at the Academy. Rikel seemed to have accepted the looters as part of the camp, and they for their own part worked to the best of their ability, navigating the tomb better than any soldier. Cormun made sure there was no tension between the troops and former slave rebels, and the operations proceeded with little issue. I have taken part in the clean-up of the tomb from the k'lor'slugs, who have tried setting up more nests in other remote corners of the tomb. The Tomb Scouts, former looters who have decided to be called by something cool, would identify their nests without being seen, after which I, Gesen and Veshta would engage the monsters and the military would set demolition charges. Afterwards I would heal any injuries and we would celebrate victory. The soldiers were quite happy at my presence: apparently I have saved them a lot of medpacs and they no longer needed reinforcements. They were also happy to see an acolyte work so close with the military without any issue, though I found that strange – shouldn't the Sith help improve the Empire?

The answer to that question came from observing other acolytes; officially, it was forbidden for the acolytes to murder each other within the Academy walls. Never mind the fact murdering each other in the tombs was apparently perfectly fine, even within the Academy murders were frequent: areas where there was no surveillance were spread across the facility; guards could be easily bribed. Finally, an acolyte with an influential enough of a master could easily get away with murder; however, such exemption was restricted only to those studying under members of the Dark Council, and to this end most of them kept their acolytes and apprentices in secret, thus preventing the latter from abusing their position. Therefore, while the death penalty should have prevented the murders from occurring, it was almost as if the place was built to arrange convenient accidents. I now understood why the Sith were cloaked in anger, why hatred was encouraged; why, their very Academy encouraged backstabbing and preying on the weak! I suppose there was merit to it – survival of the fittest would ensure the best of the best would become Sith; still, raw power and cunning could only get you so far, even back at the farm I knew physically weak kids who had plenty of other advantages: sharper minds, skilled hands… even disregarding that, death of all the acolytes was a loss of human life I did not agree with.

Harkun's acolytes didn't socialise too much with me, preferring to stay in their own clique. I didn't blame them – they already knew each other before joining the Academy and my familiarity with stronger Sith scared them off. We exchanged occasional greetings and even chatted in the cantina but not much beyond that. Interestingly enough, they managed to socialise a lot with Alif, a young kid who was rumoured to smuggle extra supplies into the Academy. However, one of the clique tried her best to be a bridge between two worlds as it were. Kory would spend the time with me during my training and when I was helping out Rikel and Cormun. During our lunch breaks she would start conversations, prompting more interactions. In general, her joy and optimism was a wondrous sight to behold, so much so that we would break into smiles and loosen up whenever the green-eyed redhead showed up. Veshta enjoyed Kory's company very much if two nights the two of them spent together was anything to go by. Strange, Veshta stroke me as the type who liked violence. Then again, she liked exotic things as well, and Kory was easily the most exotic thing in the entire Academy… that, or it was a simple case of opposites attracting.

Two somber events interrupted this otherwise busy and positive week. The first one happened during the third day. As I was just starting to practice the Overload shockwave, a wave of dread rolled over me. As I saw others around me kneel over, a vision opened up in front of me: an ancient monster roaring, swing of an old and powerful vibroblade crashing down upon its chitinous armour, then nothing. As we found out later, one of the acolytes confronted and killed an ancient Sith beast, a creature bred with the power of the Force. The result was the ripple through the Force that we all felt, apparently its intensity knocking out communications in the immediate area. The troops and Sith were to mobilise and investigate the region soon.

Second event occurred on the evening before the big day, when we would enter Harkun's office. Veshta and Gesen were absent, most likely gone to either investigate the situation on the valley or busy doing another task. Thus, we all were having a drink in celebration when Cory asked if we all received Spindrall's approval. Somewhat confused, we all nodded. Niloc then inquired as to the nature of our trials. He had to channel lightning for a minute straight; Balek and Wydr were using the Force to lift Spindrall's massive light pillars, while Gerr had to spar with the old man! Deciding not to ruin the evening with the gruesome details of my trial, I simply said that I defeated Spindrall's acolytes in combat. Then all eyes turned to Kory.

"Well, my test was nothing as dramatic as yours! I simply channelled the Force, and, well, Lord Spindrall found it satisfactory enough. That's all!"

Something in her way of speaking irked me the wrong way. Gently extending my sense through the Force so as not to alert the clique in case any of them got powerful enough to sense my prodding, I positioned myself to face the redhead.

"Someone got off easy! Just channelling the Force?"

"Yep! Well, I didn't know what your trials were, but I am not complaining now that I do!"

"We've not actually discussed our trials before, why bring them up now?"

"Ah well, tomorrow is the time Harkun judges us! I just reckoned we could ask each other of our trials now, before the main event!"

The men nodded in their agreement, then turning their attention to Gerr, demanding to know how his duel with Spindrall went. As an extremely red-faced acolyte went to show off his moves, using a table knife as an improvised sword, I sat deeper into my couch, pretending to watch the recreation of the duel.

Kory was lying, both about her trial and her intention behind the question. Why? She was as strong as other acolytes in our group and she couldn't have been pretending, I have seen her spar. The specific wording of her first question was strange. Why ask if we received Spindrall's approval of all things… oh no. She didn't pass her trial. As Gerr went ahead to demonstrate a rather peculiar move, I knelt forward and put my hands on my mouth. Maintaining a smile was proving rather difficult.

What would happen to Kory now that she failed her trial? I've seen enough of the Sith Academy to know weakness will not be forgiven. Perhaps Harkun would show benevolence… no, absolutely laughable considering what I've seen of the man. Maybe Lord Zash has need of Cory? Spindrall did mention this Zash was unlike most Sith… part of me wanted to run to Spindrall and demand answers, though it was unlikely the old Sith would give them unless he wanted to. Perhaps Veshta could protect her friend? Highly unlikely, as she was still an apprentice and Harkun was higher than she in the social hierarchy.

Acolytes broke in applause as Gerr finished the demonstration. Joining the celebrations, I put the smile back. The party ended soon after and I retired to my bunk, still not having any plan of action. Having spent some time pondering on the situation, I decided to wait till the morning. Right now I had little idea of what to do, seeing Harkun's judgement and talking to Cory in private before the meeting should provide enough information.

As I woke up, I realised with horror that I overslept! Damn it, how long have I stayed awake thinking on the dilemma?! Quickly pulling clothes on myself I rushed through the dorm area, to Overseer Harkun's office. Several acolytes cheered as I, still shirtless, dashed across the hallways. I arrived at the office tying up the sash, practically crashing into the sliding doors as they opened up.

Harkun was sitting at the large desk. In front of him stood five figures. Balek, Wydr and Kory stood at the left side of the room while Gerr and a hooded figure stood to the right. The same individual from the ship! But where was Niloc?

"Ah, the last one. Always the latecomer. Now we can see what the hermit thinks of you, slime".

My mind still racing after waking up late and sprinting through half the Academy's ground floor, I tried to calm myself, focusing on Harkun's words. He only now wanted to look at Spindrall's judgement, after a week? No, he was most likely getting our attention. As I extended my Sense through the room and gathered my thoughts, Harkun got up from the desk and walked in front of us.

"Hmm… acolyte Kory. Step forward, please".

"Yes, Overseer".

"You are a weak, pathetic rodent, and even a lunatic like Spindrall can see this. And that means…"

As Harkun was talking, he dramatically turned away from Kory, looking towards the hooded figure, before turning around, raising his hand and sending a burst of Force Lightning towards the girl. However, he didn't seem to have taken me into account.

As I heard Harkun call out Kory's name in a dangerously polite manner, I realised what he was about to do. Sensing his rising anger, seeing him picture frying the girl with his lightning, I stepped in front of Kory just as Harkun turned back towards her, throwing my arm forwards and raising the protective barrier around my body.

With a scream, lightning slammed into my shield but didn't penetrate it. Feeling Kory standing completely behind my back I focused my barrier more, deflecting most of the onslaught past me. Harkun raised his second hand to increase the power, anger and shock clear on his face, but wasn't fast enough. I could have held his full power even with an unrefined barrier; now, his lightning was as harmless to me as a breeze.

Seeing that the Overseer wasn't stopping the attack despite its futility, I slowly raised my other hand along my body, charging up my own lightning bolt. I made sure only Harkun could see it, which wasn't that difficult given the state of shock everyone in the room was in. While I didn't want to completely undermine Harkun's authority, especially now that I openly got in his way, I wanted to make it clear I wasn't going to back down. That seemed to do the trick: Harkun seized the attack, though the mixed expression of shock and rage didn't leave his face.

"Just what do you think you are doing, slave?!"

"This girl has been training exceptionally well during the past week, and you were going to kill her because of a test you clearly hold in little regard?"

"You dare question my judgement?!"

"I apologise for disrespecting your authority, Overseer. However, I must insist you reconsider".

As I apologised, I made a slight bow with my head, still maintaining eye contact with Harkun. The Overseer was visibly mad but there was little he could do as far as I was concerned: he knew I wouldn't move even if he ordered me to, and he knew he wasn't powerful enough to force me. For now, the smartest move was to exploit on my seeming submission and address the issue later. Harkun seemed to have reached the same conclusion:

"Pathetic! Bumbling like a worthless maggot, you are not fit to be Sith! Unlike our new guest: Ffon Althe. This is real Sith strength and he will tear you apart and crush your bones, slaves. Look on him! No connections left in this world but pure Sith blood. This- this is Lord Zash's future apprentice! Not filth like you!"

So that was the name of the mysterious individual! The Pureblood glared at us from underneath his hood, channelling the Force around his body. As he resonated hatred and anger, causing a visible reaction from the acolytes, our eyes met. I was considering on responding, but right now I had much more important issues to worry about than a metaphorical dick contest. I averted my eyes, causing Ffon to smirk. Harkun continued, now looking at me:

"Step this way, slave. I want to speak with you privately. The rest of you – get out of here. You know your trials. You too, Ffon. Spindrall awaits".

I had to shake my head to make sure I heard the last part right. Ffon was yet to meet Spindrall? What exactly has he been doing for the past week? Probably training, same as all of us. I sure wouldn't have minded first receiving more experience and then facing my tests, hell, I am sure all of us would! Sensing Kory moving away I held her hand, gesturing her to stay with me. I wasn't willing to let Ffon kill her in the hallway, especially that Harkun clearly wouldn't pursue the issue. As everyone but us and Harkun left the room, Overseer and I faced each other.

"Now, listen to me. Spindrall is a lunatic, his approval means nothing. You are filth and you will die. Is that clear?"

"I recall you saying Lord Zash holds Spindrall's opinion in high regard. Which of the two is it now, Overseer?"

"Silence! You are nothing, do you understand?"

"Nothing? Well, if 'nothing' was able to hold off the full force of your assault, what does that make you?"

Making sure Harkun didn't get into trouble due to lack of authority was important, though for my sake. I didn't want to face anyone strong enough to bend my will or upset Lord Zash by creating a public disturbance. Therefore, I did and will continue treating Harkun with respect his station commands in public. This, however, was a private conversation and if my stay at the Academy taught me anything, it was to have a strong backbone, especially when dealing with aggressive individuals prone to violence. Coincidentally, that made for almost an entire Academy.

Having calmed himself, Harkun addressed me in his usual sneer:

"Now, your second trial. Lord Zash has requested a special trial for you, which you will no doubt fail. Go to Inquisitor Zyn in the jails. He will fill you in on the details- and, most likely, hasten your demise. I don't want to see you again until you are back from the jails. That's all".

As Harkun and I exchanged pleasantries, I couldn't help but notice he paid absolutely no attention to Kory. Maybe he wasn't going to do anything to her, or was perhaps making me drop my guard? As he finished speaking I nodded and, gathering up the Force, turned around, motioning for Kory to follow me. My sense was still active but Harkun didn't seem aware. From his perspective he just saw me turn my back on Kory and walk towards the exit. Would he take the chance to strike her down? More killing intent was my answer. I expected it but was still disappointed to see Harkun go for such a low blow. Spreading my arms, I threw the Force around Kory, covering her with the barrier.

She screamed but regained composure as she saw the bolts of lightning harmlessly striking the shield. Turning around, the visual on the barrier making its maintenance an easier task, I locked eyes with Harkun and seemingly started walking towards him, causing the Overseer to stop his attack and back off into the table. Before he could react, I walked up to Kory, put my hand on her back and ushered her out, not bothering to look at the scared man.


	6. Part 1 - Kory's anger

Harkun started shouting in my back, calling me a slave, weakling and other irrelevant things. I shut the door to his office and sped up the hallway, still leading Kory by the back. Realising I should check up on the girl I gave her a look-over.

Kory was pale and stiff, barely able to move by herself. Clutching both hands in front of her, eyes staring into nowhere, she was a shadow of the cheerful, optimistic self. Why was I even surprised, she just stared towards her own death only to be saved at the last moment, twice! I really, really should have forced my ass out of bed earlier and talked to her, at least try to prepare her for the inevitable. It was unlikely she could even comprehend her surroundings now… I needed to see this Zyn in the jails and leave Kory in a safe spot. However, first let's make sure she is back in the real world.

Escorting the redhead through the Academy, I reached the bar and opened the door. It was still early in the day and the bartender didn't yet open up.

"Apologies for the interruption. Glass of liquor and a box of chocolates, please. I'll pay extra".

"We are closed now, come back la-"

"Move it!"

Well, that's the first time I've raised my voice at anyone since coming to the Academy. First time for everything, I guess. Bartender, seeing me aglow with the Force, chose the safe and sound option of fetching drink and food. Damn it, I shouldn't have yelled at him, he wasn't part of the problem. I am going to apologise later, but for now let's focus on Kory.

Sitting her down in an armchair I knelt in front of her, putting one hand on her shoulder and the other on her hands, still clenched around her chest. Gently pushing down on them, I spoke, trying to sound as soft as possible.

"Kory? Kory, look at me. It's alright, you are safe, you are alive. Take a look around, we are in the bar. You are about to be brought something to eat and drink, you will feel better".

"I am not hungry".

"I know. But you must eat, it will make you feel better".

"I am fine!"

"No. You look like my aunty after three days of drinking in some forgotten bar. Damn, I've seen Jawas prettier than you at this point!"

As I spoke, I gently shook her body around, causing her to break from the stupor and focus on the environment, while also channelling healing energy into her. Kory may not have any physical injuries but her mind definitely needed a boost. At the same time, I spoke some nonsense to make her loosen up. It seemed to have worked – Kory slowly started to look around and even managed a faint smile. Still far from her usual self but that's a start.

Bartender stumbled to the table, putting a drink and a box of sweets next to us. Reaching into my robe's pocket I pulled several credit chips, more than enough to pay for the food and handed them over. Bartender thanked me, sounding surprised and worried and hurried away. Well, that's apology sort of taken of, and I still had 10 credits back in my locker.

Kory gulped the drink down and coughed, before helping herself to the chocolates. The shock now over, she was filling herself up. Good, let's make sure she is feeling better before I decide what to do next. Bartender ran up to the table with a whole bottle of liquor and a second glass. Unexpected, but not unwelcome. I poured for myself, brought it to my lips and put the drink down. I wasn't really into alcohol and needed a clear head now more than ever. Kory on the other hand snatched my glass and emptied it.

While Kory was still in danger of Harkun or Ffon spotting her out, having her stay with Veshta and Gesen could solve most of the problems. They together were strong enough to deal with either man and could even employ her help, potentially making her their apprentice. Lord Samus was also ranks above Harkun, he wouldn't dare incur the wrath of one of the Academy instructors. Might take some convincing but considering Veshta already greatly liked Kory it shouldn't be too hard. I should head towards the encampment and have a chat with them, but first I'll take care of the task with Inquisitor Zyn, or at least find out what the trial was. Most likely I would need to go into the general direction of the tombs anyway and stop by the troops on my way.

As I was formulating a plan of action, I kept on looking at Kory. The 'medicine' seemed to be working: colour was returning to her cheeks, eyes were again alight with a tiny spark of joy, posture became more relaxed, she even started laughing a bit.

"Someone's feeling better".

"You were worried about me?"

"Ha! No, I was worried about myself, Veshta would have ripped my head off if anything happened to her girl".

"You are perfectly fine squaring off with the Overseer but an apprentice is too much?"

"One of them is an entity of violence and destruction, capable of knocking people down with the Force and make your life a nightmare if you sneeze the wrong way. The other is Overseer Harkun".

Kory burst into laughter, the stress of the morning finally washing away. Having waited until she has regained her composure, I took her hand, getting her attention.

"Right now I need to visit Inquisitor Zyn, after which we'll talk to Veshta, have you stay with her for the time being. I would recommend you stay close to me in the meantime, I'd rather not Ffon or anyone else get any ideas, alright?"

"Alright".

Returning the bottle to the bartender, we left the bar and headed to the jail cells. I've never personally been there but heard acolytes caught murdering others, intruders and anyone caught on the grounds of the Academy not belonging to the Empire were brought there for interrogation, unless they were killed. I asked the guard about Zyn's whereabouts and he pointed me in the far room of the jail compound. Walking past several active blocks, prisoners either screaming or lying on the ground, I entered Zyn's office.

Inquisitor Zyn, an aging plump man, was pacing back and forth around his desk, to the right stood a torture rack with a man strapped onto it… Alif! The kid looked rough, half of his face was swollen and blood was coming out if nose and mouth. What did he get himself into? As I came closer, Zyn turned around to face me.

"Acolyte! You've arrived, and not a moment too soon. Harkun has given me very specific instructions. You were a slave but must discard those traits and learn to control others. And I have just the task for that end. Meet this drivelling excuse of an acolyte. He will be your victim".

"What is his crime?"

"A short while ago, there was what we call an 'unauthorised murder' here in the Academy. A rivalry among apprentices resulted in deaths. Interrogate him. Make him tell you who committed this crime, at any cost".

"He looks rough, don't you know the information you need already?"

"He has proven rather resistant to my methods. Get him talking. I look forward to watching you work".

This whole situation was extremely suspicious. I recalled not seeing Niloc at our meeting with Harkun yet the Overseer went on without him. Now there is news of murder. I had a very bad feeling about this. Briefly nodding to the Overseer, I approached Alif.

Despite being beaten up rather badly, the kid managed to stare me in the eyes. Tough kid, though it was clear he was getting to his breaking point. I extended my Sense into him, ready to analyse his thoughts and emotions.

"Please, don't hurt me. I don't know anything".

"I won't, Alif. Do you remember me and Kory? We've met a few times".

"Yes, I do. But like I said, I don't know anything".

"That isn't true. You were there when murder happened. Who got killed?"

"… two acolytes, one of them an apprentice"

"Who were they? How did they look?"

I was gently pressing on Alif's mind, coaxing him to relax. While I couldn't read his thoughts, most likely due to him putting up a ward, my work and Kory looking at Alif seemed to make him talk. He looked… guilty?

"Well, one man was this big fella, blond hair, cruel eyes… the other… look, he talked too much, I-"

"Talked too much? Was he short? Dark skin, fidgety? Answer me!"

"Yes! Well, no, but I mean yes, but it's not that-"

"Niloc…"

Behind me, Kory gasped. Alif started saying he was sorry again and again. I stepped back and closed my eyes, recalling everything I knew about Niloc. Shortest of his clique, he was always eager to talk about his sparring sessions. He liked spicy food. His hobby was playing holochess. Apparently, he hailed from some backwater Imperial world and became a slave due to his poor financial status. Now, he was dead, killed by someone in the Academy. Someone Alif knows about…

I slammed my hands into the torture rack, eyes burning with anger, my face mere centimetres away from Alif's. Kory shrieked and even Zyn seemed to have recoiled back.

"Who killed him?"

"I don't know".

"Do not lie to me, Alif!"

"He'll kill me if I tell you, he is incredibly powerful and above the law!"

"I do not care what he is, tell me his name!"

"His master has eyes and ears everywhere! If I speak, I am done for!"

"Stop it! Enough!"

I pushed myself off the rack, Kory screaming at me to stop, and sped off towards Zyn's table. Truth be told, my anger was under the control immediately as I started shouting, physical relief helping reign in my emotions. As Kory was pleading with Alif to speak, Zyn quietly spoke to me.

"Looks like you are having some trouble. Shall I remove the girl from the room?"

"Trouble? I know who the murderer is".

"Oh?"

"If this man is above the law, it means he could get away with the murder if he wanted to. Only apprentices to the Dark Council members have that kind of influence and only those publicly studying under them. Furthermore, the man's master appears to be connected to gathering intel, most likely head of the spy department or whatever the name is. As most masters limit themselves to only one apprentice, or at least only one apprentice from Korriban Academy, you'll have your name within mere minutes of searching up information. Even if there are multiple apprentices studying under that master, you are looking for a tall blonde human male, there are barely any species in the Academy save for humans and Purebloods, and the latter are almost never blond. If the man is a Pureblood, however, that would be an easy giveaway".

"…Impressive work, acolyte".

"No. Not yet".

I approached Alif. He looked very sad at Kory, the girl pleading with tears in her eyes.

"Alif, you must tell us the name, for Niloc's sake".

"Look, he's dead now, what does it matter?"

"The man who killed Niloc is still out there and will kill again if given the chance. Would you want more of your friends to die? Would you want Kory to die?"

"Look, I-"

"If you say nothing you'll be locked in here and die anyway! If you cooperate and help us, however, we can help you, keep you hidden".

"You- you will?"

"I will do everything in my power".

"…Esorr Kayin. His name is Esorr Kayin"

I heard Zyn inhale sharply. Placing my hands on Alif's chest and starting to heal his wounds, I half-turned to face the Inquisitor.

"You don't have to repeat it, I heard the name loud and clear, though I sorely wish I hadn't. Esorr Kayin. As you correctly deduced, Kayin's master is a Dark Council member, Darth Jadus. I would be a fool to oppose him… But anyway, your trial here is done. I will send my commendations to Overseer Harkun. You may return to him now".

"What about Alif?"

"Concern for the weak is the quality that will get you killed. You need to purge yourself of this weakness if you are to succeed".

"Alif isn't weak, he is an extremely skilled acolyte with a talent for procuring information. He is a great asset to the Academy, disposing of him will be a waste".

"Hmm… I certainly require extra help managing red tape these days and in general wouldn't mind an assistant. I could keep him around until Kayin leaves the Academy-"

"He won't last here for long! If this man is so influential, he'll find Alif and kill him! Please, you need to help him get off-world!"

Kory was almost shouting at Zyn. Though she wasn't crying, despair and plight was evident in her voice and posture. As Zyn stared at the girl, I felt his indifference waver. Looks like he had a soft spot for Kory or perhaps he didn't like seeing her like this. After a few moments Zyn sighed and broke the gaze to the floor.

"…There is a Darth on Dromund Kaas who owes me a favour. I will have Alif transported to her tomorrow".

"Thank you!"

Kory practically jumped onto Zyn, locking the rather flustered but happy-looking man in a hug. Seeing the situation get resolved, I unlocked Alif's restraints and helped the kid get up. He was still recovering from the pain, but almost all of the wounds were healed.

"Acolyte- no, my lord-, no… thank you, and sorry. I am so sorry".

"You don't need to apologise to me-"

"Yes, I do! When Esorr confronted his rival apprentice, Niloc and I were walking down the hallway. As we watched the murder, Esorr turned to us and ordered us to leave, mocking and laughing at us. I turned to run, but Niloc… Niloc didn't even flinch. He was shaking from head to toe but he pulled out his vibroblade and faced Esorr! He said… he said you wouldn't run away and neither would he. Kayine then laughed harder, calling you, Niloc and anyone who would follow you cowardly dogs and charged. I ran away as fast as I could and bumped into the guards, they throwed me into the jail cell. When I saw what was left of Niloc… I was… I-"

A low, guttural growl escaped my throat, causing Alif to practically jump away from me. Ignoring the rest of the people in the room I started pacing around, recalling every last bit of information about Esorr Kayin that I knew. I was almost exclusively sparring and staying with the troops, rarely visiting the cantina… wait a moment. Tall human, blond hair- yes, I've seen Esorr Kayin a few times before. Surrounded by acolytes eager to earn his attention at most times in the cantina. Rumour had it he was trying to sleep with a female Pureblood Assistant Overseer. Boasting about his skills with the blade and eager to wipe out the slave rebellion… yes, I could work with that…

"Acolyte, may I remind you that murder within Academy walls is strictly forbidden?"

I turned towards the voice. Zyn was addressing me, Alif and Kory standing behind him. Although the jailer didn't look aggressive, he certainly was more tense than before.

"I am not going to kill Kayin within Academy walls. Hell, I most likely won't be killing Kayin altogether".

"Then what are you going to do?"

"I know that the slave rebellion is extremely well-organised. They mostly occupy the tomb of Tulak Hord and acolytes are called there to challenge themselves… it would be a shame if one overly ambitious apprentice were to be sent into that tomb to retrieve something, wouldn't it?"

"Suppose he gets there. Once he gets killed, his master would be furious".

"Why? Because his apprentice proved to be a weakling, unable to defeat a bunch of slaves? I've seen how this place operates; Sith masters overlooking the problems, seeing them as challenges for their students to overcome instead of working on them. When Esorr Kayin dies in the tomb, he will be forgotten".

"You seem eager to cause harm to Esorr Kayin. Strange, I heard you were more… timid".

"Unreasonable murder doesn't sit right with me, but normally I would try my best to minimise the conflict as much as possible. The circumstances of this murder, however, make it a very personal matter. Niloc was an acquaintance, almost a friend. To hear that he was murdered in such a fashion… the Empire has enough rabid dogs to worry about. We do not need another one".

I thought of Niloc as I spoke. He did not deserve that end, and I was going to make certain his murderer would not evade justice. The Force turmoiled within me, my brief but memorable bond with Niloc and anger intertwining together, empowering me more. Having finished speaking, Zyn and I bowed to each other and I, along with Kory, have left the jailer.

I headed towards Harkun's office. If Zyn already announced the result of my trial to Harkun, I would simply report to him and be on my way to the camp. As I was walking down the hallway, however, Kory tugged on my hand, beckoning for me to follow her. We entered one of the restrooms and the redhaired girl rushed to the lavatory and started vomiting. Holding her hair back and helping her up I tightly embraced her, calming her down.

"I… can't believe Niloc is dead".

"I am sorry, Kory".

"Did you mean what you said? About getting revenge on this Esorr Kayin?"

"Yes".

I felt an emotional turmoil inside Kory. Perhaps voicing my intent to murder Esorr was too much for now. She needs to stabilise her emotional condition, not make it worse. Damn it, bringing her to the jails was a bad idea, I need to-

"Then I will help you kill him".

Oh. Looking into Kory's I saw her usual spark, but now something was burning deep inside her, something very dark. Visions appeared in my head: red hair and red eyes, merciless, all-devouring, burning up in their own hatred… no! I heard Kory yelp in pain and saw I accidentally grabbed her shoulder. I needed to focus. Denying her desire outright would serve only to antagonise her, I needed to bide time.

"Right now, you don't have enough strength to do so".

"Then teach me! It's anger that I need, right? To grow strong. Well, it's safe to say I am more than angry right now!"

"Very well. Follow me-"

"And don't you dare lead me to Veshta! I will not be put off my desire to kill Esorr!"

"I wasn't going to Veshta. Follow me to a training room".

We went upstairs. I was surprised to find Gerr, Balek and Wydr training with Lord Samus. So that must be their trial… certainly less intense than mine. As the men were shooting out lightning bolts while screaming intently, I approached Lord Samus.

"Ah, at last! A worthy disciple. How can I help you, acolyte?"

"Do you have a free room for me to use, my Lord?"

"Not at the moment, but these acolytes could benefit from a break… gentlemen! Seize your petty efforts and make way for a true Sith!"

Samus and his dramatics… as Harkun's acolytes turned to face me and Kory, we entered the room. Samus led the men into the corner of the room, leaving Kory and I in the centre.

I needed a quick plan of action to defuse Kory's anger. In theory, I could use my healing powers to dissipate negative emotions, but I first needed Kory to draw her anger out. Getting two training sabers, I tossed one to Kory and started circling her around, prompting her to attack me.

"You want to kill Esorr then. How?"

"I will beat him into the ground with my blade and watch him die!"

"With those weak attacks? It will never work".

"I will be stronger!"

"By doing what, screaming at him?"

"Don't you dare insult me! My friend just died!"

"What if someone you like will try to stop you?"

"It won't happen! He is evil!"

"Anger blinds, and when you let it control you-"

Throughout our fight I was agitating Kory more and more, letting her release her anger. By now she was almost frothing at her mouth, wildly swinging her blade, eyes gleaming mad with rage. As I spoke, Kory went for a wild downwards swing. I stepped into the attack, bringing down my barrier.

"-Argh! It will make you destroy those you care about, twist you into a monster like Harkun or worse".

The training blade ripped through my cloth and embedded itself deep in my shoulderblade. My arm went numb and a cold sensation started spreading through my chest as Kory kept on pushing. As she connected the strike however, I thrust my other hand at her chest and channelled the Force, wiping off the waves of anger surrounding her. Slowly, her eyes started clearing as she stared at the wound, panting.

"You are not wrong to feel anger. But when you allow it to control your thoughts and actions, you become the exact same monster than the one that killed Niloc. He wouldn't want you to become such a creature, and neither would you. There are-"

"I cut your shoulder!"

"I'll live, it's-"

Yanking the blade out of my body and causing me to yelp in pain Kory hugged me, tears streaming from her eyes. As she cried how sorry she was, her anger having subsided, I tried my best to start mending the shoulder. Will take at least half an hour mending the flesh with intense concentration, but I'll be fine. I turned my attention back to Kory.

"There are other ways to gather power, harder ways but better ways. Remember Niloc, your bond with him. Remember Veshta and her love. Remember the friendship you have with Balek, Wydr and Gerr. They are your power, and you - theirs".

"H-how can I use them as power? Instructors only told us to use hate and anger…"

"It isn't easy but neither is it as hard as you think. Channel the Force within you and think of the ones you care about, the ones you love, the ones you want to protect. Focus on the emotions that come with them!"

I channelled my Force and held Kory by the shoulders, hoping to help guide her by showing an example. I thought of respect I had for Meridina, the bonds of friendship with Cormun, Rikel, Veshta, Gesen, other Imperial soldiers. I remembered the dead acolytes, my promise not to repeat the same mistake again. I remembered Niloc, his brief bond with Kory and me…

Kory reached out with the Force, but as anger was no longer active within her, she could only sense the emotions I had, and started reaching deep within her. I briefly saw her think of Veshta, then the Harkun's acolytes… and slowly, her power channelled again, but this time I sensed love and empathy, care and compassion, joy and optimism. Kory has returned to her former self but now there was power inside her eyes, and not the all-consuming one, a clearer, focused beam of energy.

Slowly I let Kory go, letting her work out her newfound source of power by herself. Kory looked at her hands, eyes wide with awe. She reached out with her hands and caused a shockwave that almost swept me off my feet, had I not raised the barrier at the last moment. Grinning wildly, she picked up her blade and performed a series of practice strikes. Gone was the rage and the insecurity. Standing in front of me was a powerful woman that no longer would destroy herself in pursuit of vengeance. The vision of blood-red eyes in me head grew fainter and faded away.

"You have done an amazing work, Kory. Remember – do not let your anger and hate control you when you will feel them; use your emotions to power your attacks, not manipulate your actions. For now, let's take a quick rest, my arms is killing me. Lord Samus, thank you for letting us use the training room, we will be going".

"Pleasure was all mine, acolyte… I must say, you have an unorthodox way of channelling the Force, but I cannot argue with its effectiveness".

We've left the acolytes to their training and headed towards the dorms. Not yet willing to face Veshta, Kory helped me disinfect the wound and waited with till it was healed. During the time she was talking about her time before she joined the Academy, time in the slave camp she spent with Niloc. I listened to her; she needed to vent out her memories and come into balance with herself and I was curious about her past. Once she finished talking and my arm was again functional, we went towards Harkun's office. Noticing the men standing next to the door, not willing to enter, we walked in first, other acolytes following us. Harkun and Ffon were inside, engaged in a conversation. They stopped as we all entered and Harkun stared at me from behind the desk.

"Slave".

"Overseer".

"…well, well, well. I had been looking forward to cutting one of you down, but it looks like I'll be spared the trouble. It appears Niloc has gone missing. And, unsurprisingly, Ffon has passed his first trial. It's only a matter of time before he tramples you all underfoot".

"I'll tear you apart where you stand, slave!"

As Harkun rubbed Niloc's death into our faces, my anger was equally mixed with disbelief. He did not just do that, did he? Judging by the faces of other acolytes they only just realised where did Niloc disappear to. Behind my back I heard Kory swallow but keep her composure. She certainly controlled her impulses better than I am. Then, to my surprise I heard Ffon boast… at me? Before I could even begin to consider reacting, Harkun continued his speech:

"Patience, Ffon. An accident in the tombs is much more convincing. Now, the lot of you are yet to properly impress the instructors, go! I want to speak to Ffon, our latecomer and his pet".

I dismissed the silly insult, Kory stepping from behind my back and mustering a glare at the Overseer. I sensed her determination and admired her courage: she only just began harnessing her power but already was not afraid of the bully! Ignoring her, Harkun sneered at me.

"Now, slave. Zyn says you handled yourself expertly, and as much as I find this difficult to believe, Lord Zash is satisfied with his evaluation. Undoubtedly, Zyn helped you in some way or your pet assisted you, but you will not have his help on the next trial and this weakling will simply perish alongside you".

I couldn't hide my smile at his snide remarks. Yes, Kory helped alright, though not me as much as she did Alif. But Harkun didn't need to know that.

"Both you and Ffon will have trials of intellect – trials that test your ability to apply your understanding of the Force to solve problems"

"You don't expect a slave to be a match for me in intellect! I've been trained by the greatest teachers-"

"Calm down, Ffon. I certainly do not expect this slave to be a match for you. That's why you'll have separate trials. Ffon, you will go to the library on the second floor of the Academy and translate the following texts for Lord Zash. Slave! Deep in the ancient, monster-infested tomb of Marka Ragnos there is a holocron, filled with dark secrets and encased in a great stone monument. No one has figured out how to release the holocron from its stone prison in over a thousand years. You will bring this holocron to me, or you will die".

"Giving Ffon easy tasks will not train him well, Overseer. My expeditions to the tomb have made me a much more capable fighter, you are doing him a disservice".

"You are only digging your own grave. You will bring back the holocron or hope that the spirit of Marka Ragnos himself returns to end your miserable existence. Now go! Oh, and the slave girl stays with me".

"She will go wherever she wants, you command her no longer".

As Harkun's sneer grew larger, Kory flashed me a smile and left the office, with me following behind. Frankly, I wasn't entirely certain why I spoke for Ffon when the Pureblood left the office. Sure, I saw what Harkun was doing to him as a major handicap – no matter your former training, without regular self-improvement and exercise you will fall behind and fail; Ffon's easy tasks would only hinder him, though that text pile looked rather massive. Still, the guy had a massive ego and with an Overseer like Harkun, nothing good would come out of it.

Kory and I walked towards the military camp. Upon seeing me the soldiers saluted and went to fetch their commander. Hearing Rikel's voice I brightened up. Finally a friendly face after a strenuous day!

"My lord, Kory, glad to see you come by. How can my men and I assist you?"

"We need to speak with Gesen and Veshta and I require a transportation means to the tomb of Marka Ragnos".

"Then I've got bad news for you, my lord. The Sith are currently preoccupied in the tomb of Tulak Hord, battling the rebel slaves. As for the tomb, it is located in the area of the blackout. Our troops and Sith that were present in the area got their minds warped, now attacking everything on sight".

"Then it is imperative I get there, my healing skills could save those men and women".

"Thank you, my lord, truly. I shall arrange a transport immediately".

While Sergeant was securing the vehicle, Kory declared she would go with me, seeing that Veshta wasn't present. While I initially declined, in the end she had nowhere else to stay safely and I would need backup in case things got messy. Thus, when Rikel led us to the hovercar, we both hopped in.

The task Sergeant gave to us wasn't simple: we would fly high over the valley to the Outskirts, where an outpost still stood. We would establish contact with anyone still around, then move down the road to the Laboratories, to both secure the road and make sure everything was still going smoothly at the research centre. I was given several portable radios, repair boxes and I requested a full armour suit for myself and Kory. While I could conjure up the barrier around both of us, extra protection wouldn't hurt.

I have given my vibrosword to Kory. She seemed more agile and handled the weapon much better. As the car hovered over the valley, I saw many figures moving through it, possibly up to a hundred. The stench of madness could be felt through the Force. As we approached the outpost I could see traces of destruction: crates and pieces of metallic constructions were thrown around, there were burn and claw marks all over the place. As I reached though the Force, however, I sensed three presences in the building. Slowly moving over towards it, I knocked.

"We are reinforcements from Sergeant Rikel, sent to investigate the situation and assist wherever possible. I know there are three individuals inside the building, please identify yourselves".

The door slowly opened and I saw four shapes making way towards me: two troopers, a human in a Sith uniform and a droid! Damn, looks like I cannot sense the droids through the Force… makes sense all things considered.

"I am acolyte Krevan, assistant to Lord Varacen, the man in charge of this facility. Do you know where my master is? What happened?"

"We've just arrived, I don't know where Lord Varacen is. I am sorry. We understand there was a power blackout caused by a powerful tremor in the Force, the result of which was the soldiers and Sith in the valley going mad. We need to follow the path to the Laboratories and re-establish communications".

"Well, I wish you good luck. Tuk'ata are rampaging on the road, driven even more aggressive by the tremor. Getting through the roads is almost impossible".

"Then I could use your help. Let me patch your wounds and-"

"Absolutely not! We have survived thus far by laying low and will not be going to our deaths!"

"That was your plan? Sit here and die once your supplies would run out? Soldiers at the Academy are currently dealing with a massive slave rebellion, they don't have the resource to come here. You are the members of the Empire, make it proud! Help us reclaim this land in its name and save your corrupted brethren. You will be hailed as heroes and your names will be known to all".

Krevan and the soldiers looked among each other. While my speech clearly gave them a motivational boost, they were still not eager to go. It was at this point I started noticing tatters and holes in the armour, black bags around the eyes… no, they won't be of much help in the field. There was something they could do, however.

"I and Kory will walk down the road and deal with the beasts. I need your help in re-establishing communications in this area and maintaining the place, can you do it".

"Certainly, my lord! We will need to reactivate the base barrier. The power generators are located outside the walls, you will need to provide us with cover".

"Consider it done. Once you have activated the barrier, set up this radio, tell Sergeant Rikel you've met me and take the hovercar back to the Academy. Fly high in the air so as to avoid attracting the attention of the crazed men below. On my mark, move out!"

We have sprinted towards the gates of the outpost, Kory and I ahead of the group. I saw faint, old blood trails around the base that lead to the gate. As we rushed on the road, Krevan and his men dashing the opposite way to the power generators, several large beasts jumped off the cliffs towards us. Hulking, muscular forms, enormous mouths with sharp fangs, razor-like claws, they charged us. Kory released her shockwave while I sent two bolts of lightning into the creatures. They appeared to resist the effect at first, but they weren't immune to it.

One of the monsters slammed into Kory, trying to slice her up with the claws, but the barrier held. She took out her swords and started stabbing at the creature while two more jumped at me. I charged my shield with lightning and watched the two beasts fry themselves, trying to bite their way through to me. With that, the assault stopped. I still heard the growling sounds from further down the road but the tuk'ata weren't eager to attack, perhaps waiting for us to walk into their territory.

It took Krevan and his men a few more minutes to start up the generators but eventually we heard the roaring sounds as the energy charged up. Having put up the defence grid back online, Krevan started setting up the radio. Kory was doing fine, showing no signs of fear or panic. Leaving Krevan behind the now protected outpost, we set forth down the road.

It took us two hours to get to the laboratory. The tuk'ata were relentless, jumping at us from the cliffs, trying to encircle and tackle us to the ground. Despite the barrier and armour, we got multiple wounds – Kory had gashes on her legs and arms and a hurt shoulder from the bite, I received an extremely powerful slash from a larger tuk'ata that cut open my armour and left a mark on the chest, as well as a few more cuts and teeth marks. It was quickly becoming apparent I overestimated my capabilities. Sure, I could hold the barrier for a long period of time while in a training room. But holding two barriers while moving in heavy armour, loaded with gear, simultaneously applying mild regeneration and fending off ferocious monsters? That was a tad bit more challenging.

As we finally got to the crossroads and turned left towards the laboratory, avoiding the open valley where almost all of the crazed people were, we saw a small group of insane Sith acolytes blocking our way. They were still unaware of our advancement, facing the laboratory instead. Deciding it was a good time to try out my healing ability. Carefully reaching out through the Force, I touched the mind of one of the acolytes.

I was met with an intense barrage of madness. Surging healing energy through the Force I attempted to essentially rip it away from the acolyte, but to no avail. The madness felt… sticky, amorphous, changing shape to evade my prodding. I lacked the finesse to handle it. As I focused back on the real world, I saw all three crazed acolytes charge towards me and Kory.

Shouting to Kory to dash to the left I went the opposite direction, hoping to bait them on me, seeing that I was the reason they got aggressive. Sure enough, three men all ran towards me. As they were about five meters away, I pushed at the sand around them, lifting it up. The enraged screams changed to confusion as the men stumbled upon each other. Running past them and Force-pushing them into the ground, I shouted for Kory to use her shockwave. With a loud clap, the three acolytes went flying down the hill into the valley. Thankfully the sand softened their landing. As they got up, growling and hissing, they didn't chase us, perhaps sensing our superiority in the Force.

As we approached the walls that separated the laboratory from the rest of the Wilds, several troopers popped up, blasters aimed at us.

"Halt! One more move and we open fire!"

"We were sent by Sergeant Rikel to re-establish communications! We have secured the outpost up north and cleared the road of the tuk'ata. We are not affected by the madness. We are carrying equipment to help you with repairs".

"How can we trust you?"

"Have the crazed people talked to you before or carried radios on them? From what I've seen, they are no longer capable of speech".

"Perhaps, but-"

"Let them through, soldier".

"My lord, are you certain-"

"I know the truth when I hear it. They came to help".

The troopers lowered the blasters and opened up the gates, letting us through. Inside was a field lab with several cages containing more tuk'ata. I was approached by thin, blond man in Sith robes.

"Greetings, my lord. Who is in charge here?"

"Technically Lord Renning, but he is currently preoccupied with his research. I am Lord Varacen and I can answer your questions, acolyte?"

"Lord Varacen? We've met your apprentice, Krevan. He has flown back to the Academy".

"Happy to hear it… say, did you by chance happen to grab the samples of tuk'ata marrow bone from the outpost?"

"No, and the place was in disarray. However, there are dozens of tuk'ata corpses up the road. Once we establish communications and potentially send reinforcements, you can easily collect as many as you need".

"Good, good! Now, are you going to bring up communications back online or not?"

I started fidgeting with the radio with the help of some soldiers while Kory used the repair box to fix the elevator that led to the hovercar platform. She looked extremely tired and I couldn't fix her wounds any more than I already did without some rest either. Once the radio went online, I started dialling up Rikel.

"Sergeant Rikel, do you hear me? Sergeant Rikel, we have secured the areas".

"This is Sergeant Cormun, fifth infantry company, Korriban regiment. Identify yourself!"

"Cormun! It is me. Kory and I have reached the laboratory!"

"Thank the stars! My lord, what is the situation with the afflicted?"

"I don't have enough skill to treat them yet, I need to research the techniques at the Academy. We are both wounded and need transportation".

"Very well, my lord. The hovercar is on its way".


	7. Part 1 - reclaiming the Wilds

"I am going to kill him!"

"No, you aren't".

"I will not sit here and do nothing while that scum draws breath!"

"I am not saying you should".

Veshta was pacing around the camp, anger radiating off her in waves, Gesen trying and failing to calm down the Pureblood. Kory and I were sitting at one of the beds, medical droids patching up our wounds.

After calling the transport I tried my best to tend to Kory's and my injuries. Unfortunately, I was utterly exhausted from our clean-up mission and while adrenalin and my passions sustained me during it, now that we were in relative safety, I was feeling drained. Lord Varacen paid us no heed, seemingly preoccupied with preparing a recovery team to secure tuc'ata brain marrow. Lord Renning, the man whose words helped us enter the laboratory, sent his apprentice, young woman named Malora, to us with stim packs and some medical syringes. That weren't enough to treat us properly but would keep us in shape before the hovercar would transport us to the medical centre in the Academy military camp. Even so, Renning was also intently researching some data, not even in the slightest bothered by the situation. Seriously, did the two Sith even care about most of the military in the area going insane? Granted, they were strong in the Force, strong enough to probably hold the Laboratory, but this level of apathy towards your subordinates was very strange to say the least.

Kory was starting to feel sick. While in the field she was handling herself well, but now the aftershock was coming in. She stared in front of her with a hollow look, body limp, sitting against the elevator, very much resembling herself after Harkun's murder attempt. I did my best to comfort her but it was clear she needed to get out of this place and in a more familiar and friendly area. Fortunately, the car didn't take too long to arrive and within twenty minutes of re-establishing communications we were back at the camp.

We were immediately treated by the medical droids while Sergeant Cormun explained the situation in the Wilds in more detail: while the laboratories remained secured and the outpost was badly hit but was in the process of recovery, the main military camp in the valley was lost, its regiment and any acolytes caught in the blast now driven mad. Rikel found this out the hard way when he sent one of his two hovercars to the camp. After the team was wiped out, he refused to send out the second car even for the scouting missions until its engines were upgraded to fly higher and a competent team would be assembled. My arrival coincided with the vehicle being fully prepared for the mission.

The local Sith authority saw little need in fixing the situation. According to Lieutenant Li'lith, currently highest-ranking officer at the camp and in charge of all the operations, the Darths saw the insanity outbreak and the slave rebellions as excellent opportunities to test the acolytes… not exactly illogical but not sensible, either. Li'lith was requesting my help to deal with both situations.

"You have already helped us a lot and you have the first-hand experience of the situation. Other acolytes refuse to work together with us, preferring to either sneak past the defences the slaves set up or charge them".

"I will gladly assist you once I am ready. My first priority is to cure your troops in the Wilds; considering that the tuk'ata situation is now dealt with, the cured troops will be able to reinforce you in the tomb of Tulak Hord".

"…You think you can cure them, my lord?"

"When I tried it, I was on the right track but lacked proper skill. I intend to research any healing techniques available in the Academy once I recover and then return to the Wilds. I am getting your men out of there, Lieutenant. You have my word".

"Thank you, my lord. I shall leave you to your rest, please tell me if you need anything".

"Yes, I do actually. Could you contact Gesen and Veshta and tell them to come here?"

"Rikel has already contacted them in the tomb. They will arrive soon".

With that the human woman left me and Kory in the medical tent to recover. We didn't get much time though: Veshta stormed into the tent, screaming bloody murder at me for taking Kory on a life-threatening task. I couldn't blame her: I severely overestimated my capabilities back there. Without Kory I definitely would have perished on that road, she helped divert attention of the monsters from me a lot. Sure, we were alive and completed the task, but I really should have trained more. At that point Kory interjected, saying that I had no choice due to Harkun. As Veshta demanded an explanation, Kory spilled the beans on the events earlier this day. The result was the Pureblood flying into a frenzied rage at the Overseer, which we all now bore witness to.

"I don't care about his rank, his friends or family in whatever high circles they are! I will rip his head off with my bare hands, then shove it up a k'lor'slug's mouth and set the whole thing on fire!"

"You can do it, but then what? The lords will find you, judge you guilty of murdering your superior and execute you. Leave Harkun be, he is not a threat to Kory as long as any of us stays next to her. Dealing with him is a waste of energy".

Veshta spun to me, her anger at my words subsiding but turning into a sneer. With rage laced in her voice, the Sith bellowed.

"You have an easy time talking. All talk, talk, talk! Kory isn't someone close to you and thus you remain calm while I had to listen to the news my close friend almost died! Ha! You have no right to tell me what to do! If it was your friend that almost died, I bet you would be just as angry as I am now!"

"Of course I would be. When I heard Niloc was killed I was infuriated, beyond reason. I wanted to find his killer and make sure he would suffer and die. I still do, but if I would walk up to him and initiate a fight, I would not help me, Niloc or anyone else. Kory is my friend Veshta, as are you. And when I see my friends in trouble or about to do something incredibly foolish, you bet I will do everything in my power to help them. For their sake, and the sake of those close to them".

I spoke in a calm, soothing voice, not taking offence at Veshta's insults. She clearly wasn't herself now and I wasn't going to let her get herself killed. As I spoke the last words, I slightly gestured with my hand towards Kory, leaving the implication hang in the air – if you die, who would look after Kory? Veshta, taking my words in, stopped radiating anger and was looking calm again. As the implication sank in, she walked over to Kory, placing the girl into a gentle but tight hug. Sensing that the women needed privacy, I motioned to Gesen and, wincing from pain the wounds caused upon walking, exited the tent.

"Thank you for calming her down. How are your injuries?"

"They'll heal. And don't worry, I don't actually care for her well-being, just need extra fodder on the frontlines when we retake the tomb of Tulak Hord".

"My oh my, look what staying at the Academy has done to your otherwise altruistic mindset!"

"Hah, never was altruistic! Every act of kindness you saw me do? All a ruse, I needed loyal slaves to do with as I please!"

Both of us chuckled at the banter, Gesen sensing through the Force I was joking. Once the stress of the day washed away, I called for Gesen's attention.

"My healing techniques need improvement, refinement. I know there is information on healing techniques in the Academy. I previously overlooked it due to having prior preparation and needing to focus on other skills, but if I am to save those people, I need all the advantages. Only problem is, Harkun sent Ffon upstairs to study and has promised to end my life if I return to the Academy without the object he needs. In my current state I won't be able to oppose him".

"So, you want me to sneak past a vengeful Overseer and his cronies, then perform an expert diplomatic conversation with my master, all to get a few texts that have probably collected more dust than the pottery in the tombs? No problem!"

"Thank you, Gesen".

"Truth is, had you not showed up and helped us in the tomb, we would be overrun by the k'lor'slugs and the looters. I, and others owe you our lives, and during the past week you've shown to many what a Sith can do when not hellbent on serving only himself. Get some rest, you need it, I will get you those texts even if I have to face the Emperor himself".

Gesen patted me on the shoulder, causing me to wince in pain at the wounds being touched and sped off towards the Academy stairs. Two troopers, Harlas and Nareen, helped me onto a bed into another medical tent. Asking them to wake me up once Gesen came back I lay down, evaluating recent events.

I messed up, badly. By not going with the group when our drinking party was over, I left Niloc all alone. By waking up late I almost got Kory killed and was a hair's width away from her becoming just another bloodthirsty monster. And last but not least, by jumping into the Wilds, intent to clear my mind of all the problems and not bothering to gather more power, I got Kory injured and in shock. Veshta was helping her now, but there was no denying it: I made it all for worse. I needed to rest and from this moment on, take extra care when making my decisions. No more slip-ups.

A gentle shake woke up me up. Standing above me, smile to the ears and one hand holding several datapads and a holocron was Gesen.

"What dark secrets shall I share with you?"

"I swear by the twin suns, Gesen, of all the things to pick up from Samus…"

"His eloquent speech is a shining jewel in the crown of our glorious Empire!"

"I'll take your word for it. How long was I asleep?"

"Two or three hours, give or take. Wipe that frown off your face, your wounds needed to heal and you needed to rest. Now, let us delve into the mysteries of the Force!"

We've spent the rest of the evening researching the healing techniques. There was barely anything; the Academy has a plethora of way to murder things, but fixing them was not a priority. At best, a Sith would channel rage and hatred to force the body to not shut down, but once that passed the collapse would soon follow.

Our research proved almost fruitless. I have learned of an ability that would allow me to spread my Force out of my body and around me, healing all those around me. Definitely an interesting skill, but not exactly useful now. Other than that, the writings didn't offer much, it appeared Meridina has given me almost all the knowledge on the healing an average Sith would even bother to study… explains why it wasn't such a wildly practiced power, there was very little on it and the destructive powers were much more alluring. The notes did offer a bit of advice, though: the stronger the passion when channelling the technique, the more powerful the outcome… damn it, so obvious yet I couldn't figure it out! All this time I was giving a lot of attention to the execution and technical part of the powers I was using, not applying the power of my emotions as much as I should have… deciding to further boost my passion, I called for Lieutenant Li'lith.

Having asked for her to gather as many of her soldiers as she could spare at the camp, I started looking into their faces, asking for their names, remembering the vow I gave to Li'lith. Get those men out of there, break the chains of madness that held them… soldiers glanced at me in confusion, some of them nervous at my behaviour. While I tried not to focus too much on their reactions, I wasn't a fan of upsetting these people, should maybe do a speech next time and be less 'in the face', as it were.

Regardless, as I was walking past them, my power started growing, beyond what I already had, surging out of my body and briefly lightning up the camp. I couldn't help but smile at the result. Out of curiosity I tried out the new power described in the holocron. In theory it was similar to Force Sense in that I needed to expand myself out through the Force, only this time instead of sensing others I needed to heal them… I decided to first extend my Sense, then prepare a simple healing touch, and, for the lack of a better word, merge the two. It didn't work at first but as I kept on focusing my power, almost instinctually fiddling with the Force to produce the result, I saw some minor scars on soldiers' faces healing! All around me men and women of the Empire started looking less exhausted, whispers of wonder passing by. I ended the technique, feeling drained afterwards. Looks like learning it was no easy task, but I was successful. Telling the soldiers around I needed to sleep, I stumbled back into the medical tent and fell on the bed.

…

"My lord, I recall you saying you weren't going to steal my soldiers' beds. Is the word of a Sith worth so little?"

As I opened my eyes and tried to gather my surroundings, a voice rang out. Looking around, I found myself in the bed in the medical tent, Sergeant Rikel standing next to me, voice in mock indignation.

"I apologise for breaking my word, Sergeant. Trust me however, the benefits of my rest far outweigh one stolen bed".

"So I have heard. Good luck out there, my lord. Bring the boys and girls home, before they drop down from exhaustion or re murdered by other acolytes".

I nodded at the Sergeant who saluted me and exited the tent. Upon seeing me exit the tent, Stawas, another soldier at the camp, called over one of the officers. I looked around; most of the troops were gone, most likely to deal with the rebel slaves. I was approached by a middle-aged woman with long, black hair, tied into a ponytail.

"My lord! Private Xanta, requisitions officer. I believe you are the one to thank for the excess supply of medical supplies, they are a lifesaver out in the tomb now".

"Pleasure is all mine, Private. Remind me to check out your inventory if I need anything".

"Your money's always good here. Is there anything I can help you with?"

"I intend to return to the Wilds and start working on saving the soldiers and acolytes, I would like to request a few medpacs if that's okay with you. Is the hovercar ready?"

"Yes, and yes! Follow me!"

"Leaving without me?"

Turning towards the familiar voice, I saw Kory, vibroblades behind her back, gear at the ready.

"How are you feeling, Kory?"

"Better. Veshta slept with me to bring comfort and I focused more on my power. I won't fail you this time!"

"You never failed me. If anything, I failed you when I brought you along into that ravine".

"I was weak before. Had you not helped me and showed me how to wield my power I would be dead by now. I am going with you, there's nothing gained by sitting in one place".

"Alright then. Private?"

"Follow me".

Hopping into the car and flying over the Wilds I again noticed the slumbering figures below us. You will not be slaves to the corruption much longer, just wait for me. Arriving to the Laboratories I saw more soldiers on the perimeter. Lord Varacen was nowhere to be seen but as we were about to head past the Barricade, I heard someone calling us over. Malora. Walking towards her, the woman gestured for us to walk towards Lord Renning.

"Ah, young acolyte, come closer! I trust the sight of a messy operating table doesn't disturb you?"

"It's alright, Lord Renning. I haven't thanked you properly for letting us through-"

"Then you are about to. Understanding the Force's mysteries requires that we seek answers everywhere, even inside a beast itself. This used to be a tuk'ata. Given your history with the animals I will spare you the lecture on them, but you should know – on the surface, nothing special, but I alone can see this creature is an expression of pure Dark Side energy, aggression made manifest".

"These animals are expressions of pure Dark Side energy? What about the Sith?"

"The Force is alive, it expresses its will in the physical world, and the Sith are the highest manifestations of the Force's will, acolyte. I've dissected dozens of tuk'ata, in no small part thanks to your rampage. Each of them advances me further to the perfect unity! I stand at the new frontier but find myself thwarted: my most perfect specimen, a tuk'ata mutant that was the result of this recent disturbance in the Force, has escaped in the tombs".

"I am heading into the tombs once I am done helping the soldiers. I will find and bring your beast back".

"I don't need the whole beast; the brain will suffice! My apprentice Malora will show you into which tomb the beast escaped into".

I bowed, leaving the Sith Lord to his experiments. His soft voice and crimson-red eyes were soothing and comforting, and his knowledge seemed immense! Once I was done here, I had to try borrowing some of his time to learn of the Force. Something was strange about him but I decided to focus on the tasks first.

Approaching Malora, I saw the woman slightly scoff before turning to me.

"Seeking Lord Renning's lost pet, are you? Don't waste your time, his research is pointless".

"How can you say that? He is a wise man-"

"My master is insane! His 'research' is a waste of Imperial resources. But if he were discredited, he would be banished, and I would be rewarded".

"…Apprentice Malora, I will do you this one favour: I shall turn around and leave to hunt this animal and forget I heard you say that about Lord Renning. Where. Is. The beast?"

"Tomb of Marka Ragnos".

"Have a pleasant day".

I spun on my heel and walked away, leaving somewhat pale Malora behind. Lord Renning was delving into the Force, learning its mysteries, and she dared sabotage his work for a power play?!

"I think she was right".

"Kory?"

"Look, if Renning is the only one who can see something, most likely it isn't there. Besides, he is cutting up animals to sense the Force within them? They are dead now, how much can you learn of the Force from a dead thing?"

"… I admit, I have ignored the theoretical part of the Force, focusing more on the practical things".

"For everyone's benefit, trust me. But I didn't, and I know what was taught to us about the Force: it most certainly isn't alive".

Kory had a point. I should ask Renning more about his knowledge once I return. Thanking her for the valuable input, I focused my attention on the valley. Three familiar figures were up ahead. Having discussed the strategy with Kory while on the car, we moved into positions. Kory concentrated for a bit and started glowing with a barrier, charging into the acolytes. Having noticed movement, they ran up to Kory and started hammering their blades into her shield; as they were distracted, I dashed towards the group and extended my area heal. As the acolytes started to be affected, I focused on their madness, the parasitic trace of madness. Imagining long claws, I made scratching motions with my hands, scraping the taint off. It was working but it was a slow process and the taint was clutching onto the acolytes. I felt it, filthy, sticky, slimy, almost reminding me of spores or wet sponges… no, claws wouldn't work, but there was something extremely useful to deal with parasites. Fire.

Reshaping the healing energy to resemble flames, I remembered the faces of the soldiers I gave the promise to – Cormun, Rikel, Li'lith, Xanta, Harlas, Nareen, Stawas… power surged within me and poured onto the acolytes. The madness, screeching in the Force, shrivelled and was gone. The acolytes, no longer driven by insanity, collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily.

Telling them to stay where they are, I sped into the ravine. Originally, we planned to take rests, luring small groups of the afflicted towards us in-between, but it seemed seeing the acolytes restored, sensation of triumph filled me and Kory with power. Now knowing how to approach the problem, we charged into the valley. For their part, afflicted were charging into us, barely using their ranged weapons. That made the job even easier: within fifteen minutes we were sprinting up the hill towards the Imperial camp, the rest of the valley cleaned.

Men behind the barricades opened fire but against Kory's barrier, empowered by all the joy and power she was feeling, blasters were useless. Running further through the camp we saw a land pad with a hovercar up ahead surrounded by tables, the car looking intact. At the tables stood a man in a decorated uniform. Commander Tynes, the man in charge of all the military at the Academy grounds. As he got into the range of my healing aura, madness taint started burning away… but stayed.

Tynes pulled out his blaster and sent two quick shots into Kory. Her barrier held but then Commander went to pull a grenade from his belt. Damn it! As a quickly glanced around and saw that everyone but Tynes was cured, I cancelled my aura, instead concentrating entirely on the maniacal Commander. The healing energy washed over the man like a tidal wave, the taint of madness disappearing almost instantly. Deciding not to take any risks, I Pulled the grenade out of Tynes's hand and yanked it up the nearby hill. An explosion was heard moments later, but nobody was hurt. I moved over to the military man.

"Commander Tynes, can you hear me?"

"…Yes"

"We were sent here to rescue you, your men and the Acolytes. The madness is now cleansed. You are free".

"Thank you. Whoever you are, thank you"

"Take it easy, Commander. Kory? Help Tynes gather up everyone from the Valley into two groups. Take the weaker people to the Laboratory and start transporting them to the camp. Once you are there, tell them more may be coming. Commander, is the hovercar over there still functional?"

"I think so, yes. We didn't destroy it".

"Excellent. You and those that are faring better will wait here. Once you see Kory return, start up your hovercar and fly up towards the military camp at the Academy. You will be treated there. I shall quickly go inside the tomb of Marka Ragnos, retrieve something for my trial and help you move".

I started heading towards the tomb entrance, people parting in front of me, eyes filled with awe. As I walked past particularly weak-looking ones I sent regeneration waves at them. Judging by their looks they have been wandering the area without sustenance for the last six days. It was honestly a miracle they were still holding together. Behind me, Kory and Tynes started organising people.

Entering the tomb, I tried sensing a presence in the Force, similar to the time I found Spindrall in the tomb of Ajunta Pall. I was indeed able to pick out three motes of energy, one of them moving around. That must be Renning's mutated beast. I headed towards the two static ones first, reckoning to deal with the animal once I am done with my trial. The first mote was in a small chamber, centred around the body of a slain beast… the same one from my vision, on the day the ripple in the Force occurred! Could its death have been the reason for all the events? I moved towards the second mote of energy and soon arrived at a large room. At the centre of it stood a big stone monument, the resonance going from its top. This must be the place Harkun was talking about… alright, let's get this holocron.


	8. Part 1 - Force Fear

"Alright, what about offering it blood?"

"Already tried, Gesen, didn't seem to work".

"Maybe put one of the shyrack corpses onto the pyramid?"

"Good idea, Kory! No, it does nothing".

"How about we all have passionate sex next to it, power of our passions forcing it open? What? It may sound crazy but that's exactly why it might work!"

Opening the monument proved… troublesome. As I first entered the chamber, I was ambushed by large winged creatures, their size easily half my body. They were blind and moved rather slowly but were ferocious in combat, screeching and tearing into you. Once they were dispatched, I went towards the monument. The pyramid consisted of two parts: most of it was stone, various drawings and runes on its sides, while the very top was a reddish pyramid, glowing faintly from the inside. This must be where the holocron resides… The monument bore hundreds of scratches and marks, most likely from all the Sith who tried to open it before me. While Harkun did say the holocron stayed locked for the last thousand years, I initially assumed such a long period to be the reason of it staying hidden. Deciding to start simple and work my way up I started reciting the Sith code. As the words left my tongue and resonated into the Force, the monument shuddered! My hopes of it being an easy task were quickly dismissed as I heard growls and shrieks from below and several monsters started charging up the stairs. They looked like the tuk'ata and the blind winged monsters I've just faced but much, much older and more vicious, hatred, anger and insanity radiating off them like a heatwave. My lightning barely did anything to them and they were breaking through my barrier with but a few strikes! Fortunately, my shockwave dealt with the tuk'ata and the winged creatures would be slowly fried by lightning as they were far too slow to catch up to me and I did my best to maintain distance.

Afterwards nothing would make the monument budge. Reciting the Sith code again, parts of it, stressing different words, nothing was working. I thought back on Harkun's words – Trial of Intellect was meant to test our knowledge of the Force and for us to use that knowledge to solve problems. Fantastic. I could go out in the field and take on monsters, heal wounded, but reciting theory… my abilities came to me easily, naturally, I never thought on the how as much as others and I have skipped theoretical lessons on the Force and Sith philosophy in favour of refining my powers. Still, I have seen that most things here tend to submit to a show of power. Reckoning that channelling destructive force and thus breaking the monument and potentially the holocron was a bad idea, I gathered up the power within me and reached through the Force to the pyramid. Nothing. I intensified the power surge, then tried using various techniques I knew with varying levels of power. The monument won't budge.

This investigation and subsequent prodding took me much more than an hour. I was startled out of my trial by Kory; between her and Tynes organising the traffic and Li'lith providing arriving people with food and medical care at the camp things were going smoothly. Seeing that I was going nowhere and reckoning she, Gesen and Veshta would help expedite the process and thus get the only person with the knowledge of Force healing techniques to the camp where I was needed. Kory called the two Sith over her communicator and now four of us were sitting at the top of the monument, exchanging ideas… well, Gesen and Kory were exchanging ideas – use blood, channel Force at specific parts of the pyramid and so on. While I was following instructions, Veshta, having quickly grown bored and disappointed we couldn't just break the pyramid, started throwing in tips that were losing any modicum of sense by the seconds. Overall, we went into my second hour of pondering, having achieved absolutely nothing and all of us were growing more and more annoyed.

"Look, just because tuk'ata testicles are so hard to get is exactly why it's what we need! Could grind them onto the top or-"

"Argh! Just open, damn it!"

"Kory, wait!"

Too late. The redhead, having had enough with the mysteries, was now sending waves of electricity into the red pyramid. As we all scrambled to our feet and I started to dash in front of Kory, I couldn't believe my eyes – the pyramid was slowly opening! Seeing that Kory was looking rather drained from the effort, I joined her efforts, Veshta and Gesen joining us seconds later. As four of us channelled lightning into the top of the monument, forcing the red pyramid's walls to spread apart, I started feeling something pulling at us, draining us even as we opened the pyramid. Kory collapsed to the ground, the two Sith following shortly after as the monument kept on draining their power even after they have stopped using their lightning. As I was left the only person standing, my friends losing consciousness around me, I reached inside me, pulling more and more power and slamming it into the pyramid. Fear started creeping in: what if Kory, Gesen and Veshta would fall here because of me? No, not on my watch. With a scream, a single bolt of lightning started getting thicker, almost a beam of electricity reaping into the pyramid. Feeling the pull inside it, I focused my power on it: if it wanted to drain me, it would first need to survive the onslaught! However, as my lightning burrowed into the pyramid, the draining gradually slowed down and then stopped. The pyramid was now open, a greenish cube with symbols floating in the middle. The holocron, it must be! I was used to seeing more triangular ones, but there was nothing else in the pyramid and I could feel the Force radiate from it. Quickly retrieving it from the structure, in case it would close on me and make the effort useless, I turned to my friends, sending healing waves into them. They were slowly regaining consciousness, looking pale but otherwise alive. I looked at the cube in my hand, the object larger than my fist.

"Trial of Intellect, huh?"

"So, acolyte, what did we learn today on our lessons?"

"I am not sure, Gesen… when in doubt, shoot Force Lightning?"

"How about 'don't overcomplicate simple things', you idiot! Now, let's get out of here, I am hungry and Kory needs medical attention… again, because of you!"

Helping the group onto their legs, making sure they were all alright, I turned towards Kory and gave her the holocron. I may have been the one to overpower the monument but without her, the holocron would have stayed locked forever. First refusing to take it, Kory soon gave in and proudly flashed the object through the halls of the tomb as we headed towards the exit.

Our journey to the surface was interrupted by a loud growl and the stones being pushed to the sides as a large tuk'ata jumped out of the alcove and charged us. Damn it, I completely forgot about the mutant! Sending a shockwave into the beast, breaking its momentum at the last second, I yelled to not hit the head and we all started circling the monster. While it was a large monster, much larger than any tuk'ata I've faced, it was facing four opponents and within less than a minute, the mutant was dead. Deciding to simply cut the head off and bring it along, I remembered the ancient tuk'ata that charged at me from inside the monument. Quickly heading back, I grabbed its head along, it would give Lord Renning more opportunities to study the Dark Side.

Regarding the Sith Lord, I was uncertain. On one hand, without his help we would be in major trouble with the guards and, according to Kory, he also made sure the people affected by the madness were transported to the camp, no questions asked. I also knew very little of Sith traditions and the nature of the Force and Renning was a scientist, one tasked with delving into the mysteries of the Force. On the other hand, Kory's arguments made sense, I could follow them. Still, she was a student and he was a Sith Lord and a researcher; he could have uncovered secrets that changed our perspective on the Force or Kory didn't yet learn enough of the Force to understand the nature of his experiments… so, would I agree with Renning, someone with clear knowledge and expertise, or Kory, my friend who I knew had my best interests at heart? Deciding to gather more knowledge, I went to the research lab, Kory and the two Sith waiting for me at the military camp in the Wilds where they left the hovercar.

Approaching the laboratories, I saw piles of tuk'ata corpses outside the walls, dozens of them. Some of them were pretty recent, I thought I even recognised some of the burn and stab marks from the assault Kory and I undertook. Passing the barricades which were now being disassembled by the troopers, the threat of the possessed acolytes and troops now gone, I approached Renning. Malora was giving me looks, seemingly seeking my attention. I could ask her about her plan to sabotage Renning, but what would it do? I wouldn't glimpse anything reasonable or learn new information that would help my case. Paying the apprentice no heed, I went onward to the Sith Lord.

"Here is the mutant's head, and another one from a very old beast, probably centu-".

"You have the brain at last, excellent work! I trust it wasn't too much trouble?"

"No, I wasn't alone when it attacked… what will you learn from the brain, my Lord?"

"Things you will not comprehend even if I had the luxury of time to show you! I must continue my research at once, take your reward and go".

"Take care, Lord Renning. Perhaps it is a good idea for me to check up on your condition, with the madness happening through the valley?"

"Yes, yes, you may stop talking now, goodbye".

Throughout our conversation, I attempted to Sense my surroundings and, more importantly, Lord Renning. What little I glimpsed terrified me – traces of madness were around Sith's aura, faint but still present. As I suggested treating him, Renning's eyes flashed, strange glimpse present for but a moment before the man dismissed me, handing over a package and going back to his work. My previous encounter with the afflicted, how Tynes resisted the initial onslaught of my healing power showed that the stronger the individual, the more madness it would take to corrupt them and, as a result, the madness clinging tighter to the person. Lord Renning was a Sith Lord, there was no way I could cure him right now. I needed to grow stronger… and hope everything would run smooth here in the meantime. Telling anyone of his affliction wouldn't help, Renning would simply be attacked if it became known he is corrupted by insanity, and he seemed to be rather docile for now… yes, it is best I depart for now and return after I have accumulated more power.

As I was about to exit the laboratories, I was approached by Krevan, Lord Varacen's acolyte; apparently the dead tuk'ata were providing him with plenty of bone marrow and the grateful Sith Lord sent me another package. Now that I was out of the labs and started heading down to the military camp in the Wilds, I decided to open both packages. Lord Renning's package contained 100 credits, seven stims that would bolster combat prowess, two sets of reinforced robes, one clearly made for a female figure and a small red crystal. Lord Varacen's package had 50 credits and a small note, in which the Sith Lord noted he thought he saw some slave rebels sneaking around the mountains into the Wilds about two weeks ago, with backpacks and mining gear. He wasn't at the time aware of the slave rebellion and thus paid them no heed but was now concerned as to why would the rebels explore the Wilds.

Once we returned into the Academy camp, I was almost immediately pulled away by Lieutenant Li'lith: the people we've rescued were now tended to, but there wasn't enough stim packs, medical droids, beds or even personnel to tend to all the afflicted. In addition, it appeared several acolytes were rogues, Sith sympathising with the Rebels or simply fed up with the brutality of Korriban and hiding out in the tombs. Li'lith insisted they were to be left to die, while I heavily disagreed.

"At this point in time I do not care who these acolytes are, Lieutenant! They need medical attention, afterwards we can decide what to do with them".

"My Lord! They are a waste of space, traitors to the Empire. We can spend this time helping those that are loyal to the cause!"

"Or, we can also save these people and show them that the Empire is generous and is willing to offer a second chance. I have saved these people and I am not giving up on them now".

"Tend to them, Lieutenant".

Commander Tynes was now standing next to us. The man was physically drained but managed to stand on his own. As Li'lith peered at the Commander, Tynes continued.

"This acolyte has gone out into the Wilds and saved my men, acolytes and these traitors. They might be beneath us, but fate has offered us all a second chance. I am not going to waste it, and I will make sure neither will these acolytes. Treat everyone, heavily malnourished will come first. That's an order, Lieutenant".

"Aye-aye, sir".

Commander Tynes nodded and went back to the tent, helping the men carry the medical supplies around. Li'lith, looking surprised, nodded towards her subordinates, who started helping a secluded group of acolytes.

"To see Tynes so invested in the fates of anyone… you have a way with people, my lord".

"What do you mean?"

"Tynes has always been ruthless towards his men, don't even get me started on anyone that would betray the Empire. To see him changed so much…"

"Let's make sure this change for the best stays then. How are your supplies holding up? Is there anywhere we can get extra supplies? More requisitions, maybe there's something left at the camp in the Wilds?"

"Requisitions won't work, but the camp… wait a second! Harlas, get me Sentry Tavon and Sergeant Garus! Tavon is dead? Damn it, what about Garus? Ah, there you are! Are the crates still in the Wilds? We need access codes, you say? Harlas, get your men into the hovercars and start scouting the Wilds. You are looking for cylinders scattered around the wilds, they contain activation codes. No, we cannot open them without slicers… the Tomb Scouts? Alright, bring Shena with you and get me those supplies!"

Seeing that the acolytes and supplies were taken care of, I moved towards the medical hub, spreading the healing powers among any who needed it. While the Force Heal techniques helped, these people needed long-term help and food, not just spiritual support. The next two hours were spent in helping the afflicted, then helping Harlas and Shena unload the supplies and, after making sure things were looking for the better, Kory and I returned to the Academy. While in the dorm area, we changed clothes into the new sets provided by Renning and started discussing our next moves. According to Gerr, Harkun would call us in three days, after the rest of the acolytes would complete Samus's tests and interrogate the prisoners in the jails with Zyn. That gave me time to refine my Force powers, take care of the afflicted, resolve my dilemma with Renning and start training Kory.

I wanted Kory to learn healing techniques for several reasons. The skills were useful on the field of battle, she was quite capable with barrier, shockwave and lightning, but most importantly, I needed to make sure she could take care of herself once she was alone. It was a given we would part ways at some point, better make sure she is ready as soon as possible. She was a quick learner, though those three days weren't enough to teach her even a single skill. She could channel the Force to attempt creating a healing technique, but needed more training. Strange, it took me mere days to learn new powers… then again, me and lightning were not becoming close friends. Still, I was chewing through other techniques rather fast. Samus provided an answer to that – I seemed to have an affinity for the Force, as well as a rather powerful reserve of the Force inside of me. I already saw the examples of the latter, the most notable being in the tomb of Marka Ragnos when I could force the monument to open as my friends were lying on the ground. According to Samus, I was potentially one of the strongest students currently attending the Academy. That made me feel strange: all this time I thought my work was the result of hard work, and now it was nothing but luck of birth? No, that wasn't entirely the case. I may have been gifted with great power, but it was my training and dedication that allowed to utilise my potential. It would be foolish to deny the truth of my natural advantage, but equally foolish to claim I didn't have to work for my achievements.

The afflicted were getting better with each day, some of them even capable of re-entering service. The rogue acolytes, after Tynes and Kory offered them a second chance, were slowly integrated into the tomb missions. While it was clear they wouldn't enter the Academy, not yet at least, they were extra help with combatting the rebels and patrolling the tombs. Now that they were taken care of and everyone was getting along, I started thinking about the situation with Renning. I needed to gain more power if I were to take on the Sith Lord; for now, I needed to pass more trials, gain more power and knowledge, help more people, explore more tombs… my existence was slowly becoming rather monotonous, but I enjoyed it: I was good at what I did and people liked me: Tomb Scouts and rogue acolytes were grateful for my help and a chance at better life, military was adoring me, Sith and acolytes were showing more respect to me and my methods… overall, life was getting good!

As the day of our next trial came, we were gathering by Harkun's door, learning of our trials. Twins and Gerr already heard of our exploits in the Wilds but to hear about it in the flesh, as it were, was very much a shock to them. On their end, they helped interrogate prisoners, the slave rebels that were captured in the tomb of Tulak Hord. With Zyn's encouragement and inspired by my methods, they were able to convince the rebels to cooperate. The information wasn't pretty – the rebels, in addition to slaves and acolytes, were almost done figuring out how to reprogram mining droids and they even had a Sith Lord on their side! Lord Surdun was busy digging up relics from the tomb and had brainwashed several elite troopers to serve him. But apparently there was someone else, the one leading the slaves, the acolytes and Surdun. The slaves only knew that the figure was a man and was only referred to as "the Hooded One" … troubling news. It wouldn't surprise me that Harkun would send me into the tomb and I was going to help the troops with clearing it up, but the odds were heavily stacked against me. Never mind the overwhelming manpower I would need to face, this time having no useful Force skills to deal with them all, a Sith Lord and someone even stronger? Who could that be, a Darth? Sure, my Overload shockwave could deal with groups of enemies, but the tomb wouldn't have many open spaces and the enemy is almost certain to capitalise on every corner and turn, seeing that they've been holed up in the tomb for almost a month now. Still, it would appear the acolytes were joining the slaves due to disliking the brutality of the Academy; with my appearance, the number of acolytes leaving the Academy for this reason has significantly dwindled. Perhaps this was the time to use diplomacy, not brute force.

It was at this time Kory remembered she left the holocron in her locker. After we ran to the dorms, retrieved the object and sprinted back to Overseer's office, everyone was already inside. Late again, it seems, though at this point I doubted Harkun would change his opinion on me. The man was steadfast in his belief only Ffon was worthy of becoming Zash's apprentice… frankly put, at this point I was almost certain I could walk around the Academy, ask to become someone's apprentice and there will be Sith more than eager to take me under their wing. Still, there is no need to resort to such a strategy yet, I was growing ever more powerful, as admitted by Lord Samus. Whatever Ffon was doing, it wasn't enough to catch up. He would spend his days sitting in the Academy doing clerk work, while I was tempering my powers and bonds on the fields of battle. Making sure Kory and I looked presentable, we walked into Harkun's office, the man impatiently walking back and forth.

"You better not be wasting my time, slave. You better have the holocron".

As Overseer was focusing on me, Kory walked up front and almost thrust the cube into his face. And to think she was scared of Harkun mere days ago… on his end, Harkun was trying to comprehend the situation. As he finally snatched the holocron from Kory's hand, his face was momentarily twisted into an expression of disbelief, before the sneer returned. To make it worse, he was oddly happy.

"Hmm, a fake, or stolen from the Library, probably. I'll deal with you later. Now- I believe it's time for another demonstration. Gerr, step forward. Ffon, kill him!"

"With pleasure, Overseer!"

That explained Harkun's jovial mood, he was trying to murder yet another one of us. As Ffon started moving towards Gerr, the big man looked at me hopefully. On my end, both Kory and I were walking towards the Pureblood acolyte, my hands coated in Force while Kory had her hands planted on both vibroblades: after seeing how acrobatic and skilled she was dual-wielding I surrendered my blade to her indefinitely. I still had my dagger for emergencies and it was better for me to use both hands to channel the Force. Harkun was a clever bastard, sending an acolyte to kill Gerr. I could not kill Ffon, as it was against Academy rules, while the latter was following Overseer's orders and no punishment would be meted out to him. But the move was clever only in theory: in practice, I already was stronger than Harkun and Kory was backing me up. I only needed to sheathe Gerr in my barrier and watch Ffon claw at the shield before giving up. If he were to persist, I could simply knock him into the wall or give a mild zap, or let Kory hack at the Pureblood and keep an eye on Harkun. Seriously, I survived two tombs already, saved countless people and have exponentially increased my power. What exactly did Ffon have that could oppose me?

The next few seconds of my life taught me to never taunt fate again. Ffon's body started emitting a deep purple light that spread around him. As it touched us, I felt his power. It couldn't be. He was towering over all of us, a tidal wave of Force against mere pebbles like us. Fear was clutching my heart, clouding my very senses. How was this possible?! When did he get so strong? As both Kory and I were almost completely paralysed, Gerr, sensing Ffon's power, attempted to run. With a laughter, Pureblood extended one of his arms and started frying the tall man with Force Lightning. Gerr fell to the floor and almost immediately started getting up, but he wasn't quick enough: Ffon dashed towards the man and, bringing up his vibroblade, decapitated Gerr with one single strike.

As Gerr's head rolled around the room, the twins were holding each other tightly, trying their best to supress whimpers. Kory was looking from Gerr's body to Ffon, shock and confusion on her face. Harkun was viciously smiling at the sight. As for me, I was in despair: so much work, so much training and power… all for nothing?

"Let Gerr be an example to you: Ffon destroyed him easily, like he will destroy all of you. Are there any other objections?"

Silence was the initial answer. I was barely able to get my bearings together, no doubt the rest weren't faring any better…

"How can you do this, Harkun? How can you be so cruel?!"

Kory has come face to face with the Overseer. Though she no longer held her blades, her fists were clenched and her figure was tense. Harkun, strangely enough, stopped smiling and was eyeing the redhead with concern. Surely Ffon would start boasting… I looked at the Pureblood: a bead of sweat was pouring down his face and he was slightly panting, something even his angry expression couldn't hide. Didn't he just show his full power to everyone, how come he was so tired? Something didn't add up.

"I am Sith, slime. Something you will never be. Now- the rest of you know your trial, go. And don't slack on training! I want Ffon to meet more of a challenge next time he will cut one of you gutter trash down. You, slave, stay here. Now, slave… you think yourself pretty clever getting that holocron, don't you?"

"It is Kory who had the right idea. Ironic, isn't it? The girl you've discarded as worthless solved the ancient riddle. But I am curious about Ffon, was it combat stims? Some other power? I've seen the Pureblood almost faint when he left the room. Should I go and ask him?"

"Your comments are only hastening your death, slave! Now, for your trial: the last, darkest secrets of Tulak Hord are buried deep within his tomb. Lord Zash wants this text. But the final resting place of the dead lord is not easily trespassed. You will not be the first to die there".

"The place where the rebels found their home then? I will get these texts Harkun… and for your own sake, you better hope Ffon will have enough power to pull off his trick again. I do not yet know what exactly he did, but I will learn it. And when I am back, he will answer for Gerr's murder".

"You are begging for death, slave. Do not come back here until you've gotten the texts from Tulak Hord's tomb. Out of my sight, slave!"

My threat towards Ffon clearly agitated Harkun. While he maintained his arrogant demeanour, I sensed his fear. He clearly was attached to Ffon and wanted the Pureblood to succeed; while that was fine, his methods were not. Leaving Harkun's office, I headed towards the Academy camp, deep in thought. What was it that Ffon did back there? How did he become so strong yet was clearly not? Perhaps there was a way to briefly raise your Force power for a time… no, his lightning didn't even paralyse Gerr. What did he do, twin suns damn it?

Veshta was at the camp and ran to greet us. As she saw our somber looks, the Sith tried to pull a funny face and went to hug Kory.

"Hello there, my little grumpy shyracks! Why the sour faces, did Harkun say something silly? Forget him, he is an arrogant weakling!"

"Veshta… Gerr is dead".

"Wait, what? That tall, tanned fella? Oh no… Kory, I am so sorry".

"Ffon killed him. He is so powerful, his mere presence in Force caused us all to shiver in fear!"

"Wait, what?! That guy is no weakling but neither is he that strong! Hey, acolyte, you have a knack for learning shit faster than all of us combined, what did it look like?"

"I am still wrapping my head around it, Veshta. It was a purple glow that extended out of his body. We were struck with fear when we sensed it, how immense his power was, our mind conjuring up images for ourselves. Then I caught a look at him and he was drained after simply using his lightning. None of it makes any sense".

"Hold up… did it look like this?"

Veshta let go of Kory and focused for a moment, then sheathing herself in the same purple light we saw Ffon use. The same creeping dread spread through me, only to stop when Veshta stopped the technique.

"It's not easy to learn, but it's a tool in every competent Sith Warrior's arsenal, useful on the front lines. It's called Force Fear, give or take, projects and magnifies your aura to intimidate opponents. Pretty simple, re-"

With a scream, I slammed my Force-covered fist into one of the ladder railings leading up the Academy. Pieces of rock flew everywhere, some acolytes and soldiers, startled by the sudden noise, dashed to the sides. Damn it! I remembered it now clear as day – when looking through potential techniques to learn, among mind control and persuasion, there was also a way to induce fear in your opponents. At the time I ignored them but made a note to research these powers, deciding to focus on mastering protection, healing and more offensive techniques. I should have recognised the power for what it was! Now Gerr was dead and it was my fault… stupid, stupid, stupid!

"Hey! Snap out of it this second! Even if you knew about this technique, you didn't have defences ready to counteract the effect of fear. You are not at fault for what happened, Harkun probably instructed Ffon to learn it in order to get his way".

"That doesn't undo Gerr's death. I should have known!"

"It wouldn't have helped! You can't save everyone no matter how hard you try!"

"That doesn't right my mistake!.. I need to learn to deal with this power, then find Ffon and have a-"

"No, you don't. I am not letting you. When my friends are about to do something stupid, I will make sure they don't, for their sake and for the sake of those close to them… I remember someone saying those words, seemed like a smart person at the time".

Last part of my mental outburst seemed to have escaped my lips. As Veshta started talking to me, the blood-red mist that was clouding my eyes dissipated. Hearing Veshta remind me of my own advice filled me with shame. With a groan I sat on the ground, the Pureblood hugging me by the shoulders while Kory was mustering a healing technique, aiming to clear my head.

"And to think it was I preaching morality and sound judgement but days ago…"

"About time we started returning the debt to you, and you've showed us all that sticking together makes us stronger… so, feeling better?"

"Much better. Thank you, Veshta, Kory"

"Here's the smiling bastard that pulled us out of tuk'ata's ass all these times! So, what are you up to?"

"I assume the troops are not yet ready to breach the tomb of Tulak Hord, but that is not necessary. I need to get into the tomb to retrieve some ancient texts… and to stop this rebellion. I have several ideas".

"Alright then. Hey, Harlas! Get me Commander Tynes, we've got a solution to the slave problem!"


	9. Part 1 - tomb of Tulak Hord

Commander Tynes was briefing us on the situation in the tomb of Tulak Hord. After interrogating the slave prisoners, Gerr warned the military about the mining droids, Sundar and the Hooded One. While nobody knew who the rebellion leader was, Lord Sundar was a known figure, a Sith Alchemist that researched various ways of mind control. He was working in the Laboratories with Lord Renning but left to explore the tomb some two months ago. Initially everyone presumed him dead, ambushed by slaves when the rebellion broke out, but now the news of him working with the enemy didn't please the troops. He left with a small group of elite troopers and engineers; at worst they were still around which would make fighting Sundar all the more difficult. Then there were the slaves, at least a hundred, sent to excavate the tombs. Before the rebellion, small groups of them would leave other tombs and conglomerate in the tomb of Tulak Hord. The excuse was orders given by the superiors and nobody found it suspicious at the time. Then came the acolytes, many of whom were disappointed in the way the Academy was run; they would enter the tomb under various pretences, only for the soldiers to see them fighting along the slaves. Nobody knew exactly how many there were, but Force-sensitive enemies further complicated the situation. Lastly, the slaves managed to slice the mining droids and arm them with whatever weaponry they had, stolen from the dead soldiers or taken from the supplies before the rebellion began. The droids were in no way good soldiers, but they didn't feel pain and were reinforcing an already strong rebellion. Soldiers of the Empire managed to hold the line, not letting the rebels out of the tomb, and with Tomb Scouts, rogue acolytes and troops from the Wilds they had an impregnable defence, but now both sides were in a stalemate.

Tynes was considering a war of attrition but he suspected the slaves started utilising the supplies to grow food almost immediately. Otherwise, they wouldn't have hold out for a whole month. Infiltration teams failed and sending them became a luxury military couldn't afford. Even now, with all the troops reinforcing the entrance, there was little point in going up ahead. Gesen volunteered to lead a strike force inside the tomb yesterday in the morning but no word was heard of him since. He also went in before learning about the mining droids, meaning the troops would be caught in an ambush.

"That's the rundown of the events, my lord. We are also bothered by Inquisitor Arzanon and Ephran Zell. Arzanon wants to root out acolytes treacherous to the Empire, apparently aside from slaves we now have yet another group who wants to claw at us. Zell is a scientist; he claims there is some sort of 'Red Engine' inside Tulak's tomb. If anyone were to find the chamber that matches his description and kill enough creatures inside it, a secret of Tulak Hord will be revealed. What are you planning to do, my lord?"

"Where are the treacherous acolytes located?"

"Above the tomb of Ajunta Pall, there's a small meeting hub where many acolytes normally socialise at. The area oversees the entrance into the tomb, it provides an excellent view on all the folks who first arrive on Korriban".

"Then I shall make sure they aren't troubling you anymore, we have enough problems as it is. Once they are reasoned with, I shall head into the tomb, rescue Gesen and his men, find this Red Engine and start helping you push the rebels back".

"Then take this projection of the chamber and this ID scanner. There are only six acolytes you need to find and they are most likely in the hub right now. Best of luck, my lord. The Empire endures!"

With that, Tynes saluted me and went back to organising the troops. I heard them discuss the plan of attack, follow me and secure the tomb. Soldiers and acolytes looked at me with hope and respect as I passed through. The slave rebellion was growing in power over the past month, but now they had a fighting chance against the rebels and hope that the mission will be a success. Remembering that Gesen was still in the tomb, I sped up the hill, onto the top of the tomb of Ajunta Pall. I needed to deal with these acolytes soon.

Coming up the makeshift ladder, I saw a small construction up ahead, voices coming from the inside. At the entrance stood two acolytes; upon seeing me they retreated inside the shack. Stepping in, I saw a total of eight figures, all now staring at me. I recognised some of the faces from cantina or training rooms, and there was recognition in their eyes, too, even reverence? I slowly pulled out the ID scanner, at which point the room has gotten uncomfortably quiet, all eyes now focused on me with intent.

"You seem to know who I am. Do you know why I am here?"

"We sure do, at this point there are barely any acolytes who don't know you. As to why… looks like Inquisitor has given you a wrong idea about us".

"I Sense your fear, your worries. Calm down, I have no desire to kill you. Explain what you are doing here, why are you rebelling against the Empire".

"Well, initially we just wanted to reap more for us, you know? Overseers are bastards, death and betrayal are everywhere on this blood-stained rock. We reckoned to stick together, work together. Eventually, we started to plot: overthrow the weak Overseers and run through the Academy, stirring up everyone and remaking the order of the Sith hierarchy here as we saw fit. Then you arrived. Funny thing, we've seen you when you first dealt with the k'lor'slugs. Then we heard more tales: you saved soldiers from certain death, then recruited looters, then more… you are the bloody living legend here among the low ranks like us, someone who gets shit done without murdering half the populace first. So, we thought to start gathering people to help you".

"Help me? How?"

"We've heard about what Esorr Kayin did, how Overseer Harkun treats you. We would hunt these bastards down and kill them, to make sure you would walk through the world without having to worry about them".

"… I see. Acolytes! Listen to me well – I want to help the Empire become better, I want to make sure those living under it prosper, that good deeds are rewarded. I do so because I swore a vow, in the name of those who helped me, who died when I was left alive. To use my power for the better, to inspire those around me to do better. If you are to kill Kayin, or Harkun, you would not advance this dream that you share with me. They are already becoming minority in the Academy, let them wither away into nothing, forget them. If they intend to strike at you, do not hesitate to strike back, but do not stoop down to their level, do not become beasts. Right now, men and women of the Empire need your help in the tomb of Tulak Hord. The rebellion has already drained us of many resources, has cost us many lives. Join me and help end it!"

"With pleasure! We shall march alongside you and slaughter all those tra-"

"No! We will not be killing them. We will help them see the error of their ways".

"What? But… but why?! They turned their back on the Empire, they murdered people you knew! Why show mercy to those bastards?!"

"I am not showing mercy. Many of the acolytes that joined the rebels did so because, like you, they didn't like what the Academy was and sought to make things right. The slaves got sent to work in lethal environments; as a former slave myself, I know what it feels like to risk your life for seemingly nothing. Let us show them that there is a better way, let them forge a better Empire together with us!"

Throughout the conversation, the acolytes were speaking one after another. I saw in their eyes the determination to make things better, the only way they were taught how: violence. Sensing their desire to help me, I stirred them away from the bloodshed into a more peaceful approach. At the end, while I could sense occasional small disapproval with my methods, the acolytes were willing to follow me. I would now show them the better way, lead by example. We went to the camp, Tynes greeting the acolytes with enthusiasm and sending away a man in purple robes who held another ID scanner. That must have been Inquisitor Arzanon. The Sith glanced at me, took my ID scanner and left without uttering a word. I then turned to Tynes.

"Commander, these are the acolytes people were worried about. They will help us reclaim the tomb".

"I knew you wouldn't murder them, my lord! Arzanon was displeased but to hell with him! If we secure the tomb, we will all be hailed as heroes. What is your plan?"

"I and a small group will move in first. I will locate Gesen's group, send them to you and neutralise the droids. I believe the enemy to be using them on the frontlines. Once they are dealt with, I will find and engage the rebels in the conversation. I will show them there are better ways and then send you the signal; you and your troops will move in, subdue anyone who would then resist you and escort the rest. We will tend to them and show them the Empire is merciful. Have all the acolytes currently at your disposal reinforce the soldiers, let the Force and blaster fire work together. Unity is our strength, through standing together we will begin re-forging the Empire!"

Roars and hoorahs were my answer. All the soldiers and acolytes and former looters I have seen, rescued, helped over my stay at the Academy were now by my side, ready to charge. Amazing, to think this was the support I have gathered over barely two weeks… finding Kory and Veshta, I and the redhead changed into the robes provided by Lord Renning. The cloth was reinforced with metallic armour at the outside but was lighter than the heavy military gear I was used to. It allowed for more mobility while still holding up against occasional blaster fire, as well as looking rather fancy. Together, the three of us entered the tomb. Our first goal would be to reclaim the antechamber, have the Imperial forces move in and proceed further, into a large opening that had more entrances into catacombs… according to the maps I was given, the tomb looked enormous, easily fitting both the tombs of Marka Ragnos and Ajunta Pall inside its structure and then some! This Tulak Hord must have been a great Sith… or perhaps had a big ego. After all, even the tomb of Ajunta Pall, the first Sith, was smaller.

Having activated my Sense, I was walking first, Kory and Veshta behind me on each side. While I was aware Sense couldn't detect droids, it was useful for keeping track on anything alive, especially if we were to find Gesen. As we went down another set of stairs that led to the antechamber, I sensed presence in the Force! Five signatures, worry emanating from them, slowly moving towards us. Motioning for the women to be quiet, I descended the stairs and peeked around the corner. To my relief, the group was wearing Imperial uniforms and were clearly wary of the tomb, staring into it and moving large objects… corpses. Damn it, some of the group didn't make it. I hailed the soldiers, slowly walking around the corner with hands in the air, gesturing for Kory and Veshta to follow me beforehand. One of the soldiers recognised me, Stavas! A female acolyte, looking rather bruised and battered, approached me.

"My lord, we've heard of you! Apprentice Peyterra. I was with Gesen when we went into the tomb".

"I shall tend to all your injuries, but where is Gesen?"

"He… I am sorry, we were ambushed by those blasted droids the slaves have reprogrammed, Gesen protected us-"

A horrible scream was heard behind me as Veshta rushed past towards one of the all too familiar looking bodies… lying on the ground, dead eyes forever affixed to stare into one spot, was Gesen. Spreading my healing aura and coating the people around in revitalising energy, I watched as the Pureblood woman howled and wailed, clutching Gesen's dead body. Kory tried hugging and pushing Veshta away, but she wouldn't budge. Having made sure the people were taken care of, I went closer to Gesen's body.

The Sith was clutching his broken lightsaber in one hand, at least a dozen burn-marks on the body. He must have been deflecting the blaster bolts of the droids until his lightsaber got shot apart, then used his body as a shield, giving the group a chance to strike back… kneeling down to look into the man's eyes, I put my hands on his chest. All around the body, tendrils of energy warped, moments before Gesen's death flashing before my eyes: I was Gesen, pushing and shocking droids that seemed to jump from every corner of the tomb. I order a retreat, the droids advancing on us. Blaster bolts fly though the air but I was trained for it, my lightsaber twirling through the air as all the bolts are deflected apart. But there are too many, my lightsaber breaks and pain is reaping into me. As darkness claims me, I think back on Veshta, Kory and that good Sith who gave me another chance at life… chance I have wasted…

Veshta and Kory must have seen the vision as well, for both of them were now looking at me. I gently pressed my hands into Gesen's chest, channelling the Force inside his body.

"Gesen… I do not know if you can hear me, from beyond… but you didn't waste your chance. You saved your team, and now we are here, to finish what you started. Rest now, my friend, you have earned it. We will carry on, in your name".

One by one the tendrils dissipated. I felt something leaving Gesen's body, something touching my shoulder, then nothing. But now the Sith's body was no longer stiff, the expression of pain and anger and sorrow having left his face, the eyes now looking less cold. I closed the man's eyes and, hearing screams, focused on the real world. Apprentice Peyterra was shouting and pointing to something behind my back. As I turned around, I saw two droids enter the antechamber, blasters at the ready. Before anyone could react, Veshta lunged forward, her lightsaber cleaving the machines in half. Anger and hatred radiated off her in sickening waves, I could see her crumble under the weight of her own emotions. I Pulled the Pureblood towards me, holding her against the shoulders, her lightsaber falling on the ground.

"Veshta! Look at me. Look at me! Gesen did not want this-"

"Damn right, he wanted to live!"

"You will not avenge him by dying yourself! People need you to stay strong, Gesen wanted you to help them. Stay with us, for him, for me, for Kory. We need you, Veshta".

Slowly, the Pureblood's waves of anger subsided and she almost slumped into my arms, the exhaustion from such extreme emotions overwhelming her. Quickly handing her over to Kory, I started shouting orders.

"Kory, Peyterra, get to the surface and have the troops start moving in!"

"What about the droids?"

I waved my hand, urging the group to leave. Only after they left behind the corner, carrying the corpses of the fallen with them, could I answer the question.

"By the time the troops are here, there will be none".

Veshta's anger must have seeped into me for I sensed her thoughts, but I was filled with rage even without her. Gesen, my friend, who helped me learn and understand Force techniques, who helped the troops with the tombs; Gesen, who helped me train and was the first person to help me out whenever the need arose. Now dead, slaughtered by some mining droids in a tomb of a long-dead Sith… where was the justice in that?! Amidst my turmoil I remembered my own words: it is alright to feel anger, but it is bad when it controls you. I started shaping the emotion, turning it into fuel for my power. Unlike empathy and compassion, this act was much easier to perform, anger was so easy to fuel into a destructive power… but I needed defence. I thought back on all the soldiers and acolytes that would soon enter the tomb. They needed me to clear a path, to walk safely. As my hands were now coated in anger, now my body was again protected by the barrier. Having made sure I was ready, I stepped deeper into the tomb.

More droids were awaiting within. As I pushed them aside, the force of the attack more than enough to make any living creature scream in pain, the metallic constructs kept on firing even as they were propelled into the walls. I ripped them apart with the Force, zapped them with my lightning, shattered them with shockwaves. Their attacks with blasters or blades bounced off my shield, occasionally I would surge the lightning across it. I was happy the slaves hacked the droids, they were not alive, not human and I could unleash my anger upon them with no repercussions. I doubt I would have been able to approach the slaves with any semblance of calm without this stress relief.

I didn't know how long it took me to move through the tunnel of the tomb. By the time I saw an opening, my anger was now expended and I again had a cool head. Several figures were moving up ahead, aiming and firing blasters. As the bolts ricocheted off my barrier, I reached through the Force and yanked at the weapons, disarming the group. Walking outside, I was immediately surrounded by at least twenty people, though none were too eager to approach me. Seeing a chapel-like building at the hill top up ahead, I headed towards, taking a look around.

The opening had three more archways further ahead. The large valley inside the tomb was crowded with people. Most of them wore poor-looking clothes or scraps of Imperial armour, but I noticed a few wearing Sith acolyte robes. There was easily up to a hundred souls here. Along the corners there were small farming grounds set up, weapon racks and training grounds. The place was very well-maintained, it was frankly impressive to see what dedication could bring forth. Standing in the chapel, I looked around, making sure everyone was having their eyes on me and, amplifying my voice through the Force, addressed the crowd.

"I came here expecting to see a group of scavengers, surviving off scrap and sheer luck. Instead, I see an organised community, capable of fending for itself and drawing plenty of support. Tell me, why do you oppose the Sith, why do you revolt against the Empire?"

One of the acolytes, a lightsaber dangling from his belt, stepped forward.

"You wouldn't understand even if the truth was in front of you, Sith! But I shall explain to you: the Empire took much from us, our freedom, our close ones, our homes. We shall upstage a revolution that will eradicate the filth that took everything away from us and gave us slavery, misery and pain! Empire is evil, corrupt, cruel, it leeches off the worlds and gives nothing in return! The Republic and Jedi will offer us homes and freedom again, once we vanquish evil. Our leader has shown us much, he opened our eyes to true power. With him, we are unstoppable!"

As other rebels voiced their support, I tried to wrap my head around new terms. Sure, I have heard of the Republic as I was growing up, just as I had heard about the Empire: two superpowers of the Galaxy, battling for supremacy in the recent war. But what were the Jedi? Deciding not to delve on new terminology and instead use what I knew, I raised both hands in the air, calling everyone to attention.

"You may not believe me, but I understand you. You had everything taken away from you and are now promised vengeance against your oppressors. And I must say, you were very successful in hitting the Empire where it hurts: taking supplies, reinforcing yourselves with the power of the Force, using the difficult terrain of the tomb to stage traps and now even using droids to fight! While you have caused the Empire and me a lot of blood, only a fool would deny how impressive your resistance has been operating. And yet, I ask you – do you think you will win, a group of maybe two hundred strong against a state whose planets number in the hundreds? I see you want to say, you have been successful till now! And you are right. For one whole month you have been holding this tomb against all manner of attacks. A Sith Lord has even joined you and your leader is a powerful man. And yet, there are more soldiers on Korriban, on the orbital station, in the rest of the Empire! Do you want to know why they didn't yet do anything to you, why the Sith Lords and even Darths merely observe? Because you did not harm the Empire. You have killed my friend, you took lives of many more soldiers and acolytes, but as a whole, the Empire is not bothered. Look at me – I am but an acolyte and yet I walked into your camp and none could oppose me. What will you do when a Sith Lord or a Darth decides that you have become a problem?"

"If you believe we are the only pocket of resistance, then you are mistaken! On every Imperial world there is talk of dissent, people fight back against the tyrants as we speak. We might fall but our actions will inspire more to continue the good fight!"

"Are you sure they will? This place is home to Sith, their holy ground. Once you are destroyed you will be forgotten. And while rebellions will spark on other worlds, remember that a mere acolyte was able to walk inside your camp. Against true Sith, you will not stand. You say that you will join the Republic, the nation that fights the Empire. But ask yourselves, you who have been oppressed by authority before – why would a nation care about those that do not belong to it? Like the Sith who would use you for digging up the relics from the tombs and then discard you, so will the Republic abandon you once you play into their needs. But you are part of the Empire, not Republic. And although harsh, the Empire respects strength and persistence. I see everyone here show these traits. Why destroy the Empire if you can help me and many others make it better? I, too, experienced great hardships because of the Empire, and yet I have risen to help those in need, and so can you".

"You speak as if you are one of us, a slave or a wronged person! But you are lying, you are anything but!"

"Oh? Are you saying you can sense when a person is lying or not?"

"Yes! And among us all have suffered from the Empire. There are few that were born into power and privilege, but they, too, have joined us over the course of time. I don't see a slave, only a pompous demagogue".

"Then you are blind! I was born on Tattoine, a world of two suns, a world of endless deserts, Jawas and Tuskens, Krayt Dragons and Womp Rats! My family and our entire community were massacred by the Empire soldiers when we attempted to push them out of our farmland. I and the rest of the survivors were transported onto the world of Ziost, where I was working on the Empire for a long time. Once my Force sensitivity was discovered, I was sent here, to train. But barely anyone saw me as anything but a slave at first. It was through my effort that I changed things for the better. I saved Sergeant Cormun, Gesen, Veshta and more soldiers from k'lor'slugs. I gave Shena and his men a second chance in the Empire, making them Tomb Scouts. When the Force wave hit the Wilds, I went there are cured the afflicted, making sure that rogue acolytes would stay with the Empire and not be executed. I saved acolyte Kory from a bloodthirsty Overseer. I healed wounds, calmed down the psyche and made sure this Academy, this place was safe and secure, that people could explore it and study the tombs' secrets. I didn't always succeed and I have seen many losses since I arrived here, but I made sure to keep moving forward. Look inside me, sense me through the Force and see that I am not lying! Look into the minds of all the soldiers and acolytes that have come with me, see the truth for yourself!"

Throughout our conversation, Imperial forces were slowly piling through the tomb entrance, but didn't engage the rebels, instead calmly standing and awaiting the end of my speech. As I finished, one after another, troops and Sith would step forward and confirm my words. The crowd, already listening in, was at that point no longer shouting. Slaves and Sith alike have started to drop or sheathe their weapons and sit on the ground. The acolyte I was talking to, however, grabbed and ignited his lightsaber, the blade glowing bright blue… blue? Weren't all lightsabers red?

"Acolyte! Before I joined the rebels, I was an Overseer! Together with my partner we judged acolytes, issued them trials. Then one day, my partner was murdered, her corpse charred beyond recognition with Force Lightning by a Darth who thought she wasn't strict enough. If you claim to change the Empire for the better, give us all a chance to live freely, then prove it! Fight me and win!"

Though the bravado was resonating from the former Overseer, I saw the apathy and resignation in his eyes. He saw I was speaking the truth, saw that I was right but refused to accept my words. It was easier for him to die here, to see his beloved again… I focused on the Force around me, feeling several hundred people around me, listening to me, empowering me. Reaching with my hand towards the Overseer, I Pulled at the lightsaber hilt. He attempted to hold the blade, but against me, empowered by hundreds of echoes in the Force, he couldn't do much. The blade flew into my hand, feeling wrong, cold, different than the Force I was used to. Turning the lightsaber off, Force emanating from the body, I looked down upon the man.

"Overseer! Hear my words and remember them well – I did not enter this tomb to murder without reason. Only when facing mindless beasts, thoughtless machines or left with absolutely no other choice will I resort to violence. You have suffered great loss, but would your partner look favourably upon you now? No! There are more acolytes who need training, acolytes like the ones currently without a teacher. Do not abandon them, show them a better way to be Sith! For yourself, for them, for your partner!"

I spoke not only physically, but through the Force, the words striking at everyone around me. So powerful was I that I saw many kneel over at the speech. Former Overseer now bowed his head, in shame and sorrow. Extinguishing my Force, I walked off the pedestal and towards the man.

"Tell me, Overseer, what was her name?"

"… Sathel. I am Ardran. We would judge students according to the wishes of other Sith Lords, even arrange convenient accidents in the tombs when ordered… We hoped to avoid being persecuted by the Sith, and yet… she…"

"I do not know your past or what caused you to act the way you did, Ardran. But I want you to remember Sathel, what she meant for you. Use this memory to move forward, train new acolytes under generous masters, make the Sith Academy a better place. You are not alone, more Sith are favouring me, and Lord Samus will happily accept a helper. For now, let us leave this place, take a rest, tend to the wounded, mourn the dead… and prepare to move onwards".


	10. Part 1 - Vald Inosp

Overseer Ardran started gathering people, the former rebels leaving the atrium. Not everyone was willing to leave, a few individuals attempted to fight the Imperial troops, but in the end, the slave rebellion was over. I couldn't believe it: one month has this rebellion persisted, lives taken on both sides, and now it was no more. Slumping against the stairs of the chapel, I watched as slaves were escorted through the tomb, soldiers watching them; Imperial acolytes were taking care of rebel acolytes. Rebels were packing their possessions; some were starting to remove the crops and solar panels. I could see a few people go into two other tomb entries, most likely to get people and gather more gear. As I was taking in the scenery, Kory broke from the crowd and approached me.

"Tynes is making sure rebels are taken care of. He might even offer them jobs in the local military assets! And yet, for all your speechcraft you've forgotten something!"

"Oh?"

"What did Overseer Harkun tell you to do here? That's right, collect the writings! Guess what you missed in the antechamber?"

"I would have collected it on the way ba-"

"Yeah, sure. Seriously, what would you do without me making sure your trials are actually done?"

"Probably failing and running away from Harkun. Thank you for help, Kory, I mean it".

The redhead was agitated, not that I could blame her: between Gesen dying, me brutally destroying machinery and convincing over a hundred rebels to back down, I could barely comprehend the events of the day myself. Thanking Kory for her help, the redhead beaming at praise, I forced myself on the feet and looked towards the two entrances from this opening. I have entered through the entry now behind me that people were pouring through. To my left was an entrance into the Machine Vault, up ahead were the Archives. Before I could decide which area to explore first, blaster fire was heard from the Machine Vault! Several people jumped out, soon followed by two troopers clad in very impressive armour. The soldiers then seized fire, turned around and walked back into the Machine Vault. Looks like there is still some resistance, possibly Lord Sundar, judging by the gear of the soldiers. Kory and I took off towards the entrance to the vault, questioning the people who just ran out on our way.

"Who's inside?"

"It's Lord Sundar! He has brainwashed his men into following him here!"

"What is he doing here?"

"He came to study secrets of Tulak Hord! Yesterday he moved into the Machine Vault from the Archives, apparently he has found some sort of red engine and wants to activate it. He and our leader are working together".

"Who is the Hooded One? Where is he?"

"We don't know! He is some sort of Jedi, but incredibly powerful and strong in the Dark Side!"

More of this 'Jedi' stuff! However, If Sundar is next to the Red Engine, I can kill two birds with one stone. Dismissing the men and closing up on the entrance to the Machine Vault, I reached with my Sense: two figures up close, four more up ahead. Around the auras was a taint, impurity, reminiscent of the madness I've seen in the Wilds. However, where the madness was an uncontrolled, wild aura, this corruption was much more refined, intentional, forming a band around peoples' heads. Motioning for Kory to stay behind, I quickly peeked around the corner. No, only the two troopers who were now descending the stairs, no droids. Quietly stepping towards them, I then sent healing surge into the two soldiers; then, remembering the first time I attempted to lift the madness, I shaped the healing energy into the claws and, motioning backwards with my hands, teared through the bands of corruption. The malevolent energy, now fractured and assaulted by my healing wave, crumpled away, the soldiers falling on the floor.

Though the whole act took mere seconds, the troops made quite a few noises, briefly screaming and falling down. Strangely enough, four figures further down the tomb didn't seem to move towards the noise, but I could hear radio static in the soldiers' helmets as they started looking around. Slowly walking towards the soldiers, motioning with one hand I meant no harm and holding index finger at my lips with the other, I looked into the helmets, trying to establish eye contact. As moments of silence passed, one trooper brought hand up to the helm and activated the radio.

"This is sentry group one, all is clear. We had armour malfunction, nothing to worry about. We will maintain contact if anything happens. Over".

Breathing out a sigh of relief, Kory and I relaxed, me stopping the Force from flowing across my body and Kory sheathing the blades. Soldiers removed their helmets, revealing two Purebloods.

"I am with the Imperial military, the slave rebellion is over. What is the situation here?"

"We are part of Lord Sundar's team, my lord. He is busy learning Tulak Hord's secrets".

"Did he put this aura over you?"

"We… think so, yes. Initially, we came here to assist Lord Sundar. Once the slave rebellion began, we initially hid deeper in the Archives, prepared to repel any incursions. However, Lord Sundar talked to some hooded figure, and next thing we remember was our minds invaded… the last month has been a haze, with only clarity being one directive: obey Lord Sundar".

"You are free now. Outside, Commander Tynes is organising the withdrawal of rebels and his troops, join him and explain the situation. Tell him I will be sending more over. I am sensing four more people downstairs, how many more men does Lord Sundar have? Anyone that follows him without being controlled?"

"There is eleven of us in total: us, two more guards, Lord Sundar and six engineers that maintain and repair the droids. Lord Sundar controls us all, and I doubt anyone will feel all too eager to help him after what he's done to us".

"Is Sundar helping the rebels?"

"We don't know, my lord".

Nodding and dismissing the troops, Kory and I started descending the stairs, the redhead in the front. Great, more droids, as if my task was easy before that! Heading down I saw four men crouching next to several deactivated droids, repairing the machines. Upon the signal, Kory jumped onto the droids, force of the momentum and barrier around her body smashing the droids into unrepairable state. The engineers, momentarily stunned by their machinery destroyed, went to draw their blasters but Kory and I were faster: while Kory channelled the barrier and went to grab the two engineers in front of her, I ripped the corruption off the other two, proceeding to move over to the remaining engineers. Despite being held by Kory they managed to fire their weapons before the mind control was broken.

Most likely the noise would attract the rest of the enemies. Motioning for the engineers to exit the tomb, we headed further into the tomb. Having initially turned left at the entrance and descended down the stairs, we have arrived to another turn. As we were about to turn around the corner, I sensed two figures approaching us from the tomb, and quite a few more up ahead, though their numbers were gradually dwindling… Kory turned around the corner first, immediately drawing blaster fire, the shots ripping into her barrier! Channelling my own Force into her shield and reinforcing it, I ducked around the corner and rolled behind some crates, getting a quick glance at the opponent. Two more elite troopers, clearly carrying more advanced weaponry than an average soldier. . I recalled Commander Tynes, how his officer's blaster did considerable damage to my barrier, and that taking into account I was empowered by all the saved soldiers and acolytes! Fortunately, these rifles weren't as powerful and I have grown much stronger since then. Maintaining my connection on the barrier, I quickly emerged from the crates and, before the troopers could focus on me, encased them in my healing blasts, ripping off the control bands. That should leave only Sundar and two more engineers, but what are other entities I could sense?

I focused more on the sounds around me; up ahead was a battle, blaster fire and lightsaber striking into something, familiar screeches going though the air… k'lor'slugs! Focusing more on my surroundings, I started to get a hold of the situation: after turning around the corner, there was a straight hallway with another ladder descending into a large opening. Up ahead, two engineers were ascending the stair, their backs turned to us, firing into the room. I couldn't make out the details of the fight, but judging by the sounds, droid and k'lor'slug remains on the floor, it was brutal. One k'lor'skug, looking rather large and armoured, was now advancing on the engineers before suddenly getting yanked inside the room. Interesting, it appeared Sundar cared about his men, but why brainwash them then? Purging the engineers off the corruption and Pulling them towards me, I stepped into the opening, keeping Kory behind me for now. I was stronger in the Force and thus could take more punishment from Sundar if it came to it.

I stepped into a large room that had three more subsections around the corners. In the centre stood a strange structure, glowing red, seeping something off k'lor'slug corpses strewn all around it. In front of it stood an enormous k'lor'slug, larger than any I've seen before. The monster was assaulted by a large man wielding two lightsabers, hacking at the beast in a seemingly wild fashion. Upon closer look, however, his moves were deliberate, the seemingly rash and wild attacks were striking at the weak spots in the worm's carapace, slowly wearing it down, while the flourish distracted and disorganised the enemy. As I watched the fight, slowly gathering my senses and preparing for a potential confrontation, Sundar charged up his lightsabers with the Force and stroke into the creature's belly, the impact sending shockwaves along k'lor'slug's body, the beast crumpling down on the ground, reddish mist emanating from the corpse and being absorbed into the monument. With a dissatisfied grunt, Sundar turned towards us.

"I've felt the control on my men fading. Are you the one that killed them?"

"I did not harm your soldiers, Lord Sundar. You are outnumbered, surrender".

"You overstep your bounds, slave! You rabble should be setting up your little resistance camp, go and do that before I cut you in half".

"I am part of the Empire, Lord Sundar. Slave rebellion is no more".

"Huh… I expected him to last longer than that. No matter, my work is almost complete, you cannot stop me".

"That is not my intention. You can go back, help the Empire with your research".

"Ha! Empire is filled with weaklings and fools. I am almost done researching the secrets of Tulak Hord, the power of immortality. Once I offer enough blood to this stone it will open, revealing the tablet, and you and your friend should do just fine! Step forward and kneel".

As we talked, I gave a look-over at the Sith Lord, the tall human returning the inquisitive stare. He was wearing a set of heavy armour; not the type troopers were wearing, this one combined cloth and armour plates, being lighter but still offering formidable protection. He looked young, most likely barely in his thirties, slick black hair combed tightly to his head, two lightsabers currently at his belt. As he was finishing his boast, Sundar reached out with his arm towards us, Force collecting at his fingertips and drifting towards us, forming bands. He was trying to mind-control us! Quickly raising my hands and surging up my healing energy I intercepted the mental assault, the talons breaking the bands as they reached Kory and I. A surprised 'hmm' was heard from Lord Sundar before Kory plunged herself at the Sith.

However, while the Sith Lord may have been surprised, it was clear he was an experienced warrior. Sundar sidestepped Kory's assault, batting the redhead as she flew past him and, igniting the lightsabers, advanced on me. I recalled my sparring fights with Gesen and Veshta. The lightsabers were much faster than the vibroblades, as their blades were weightless. They also were much, much more powerful, being able to slice through solid rock or metal with ease. Fortunately, my training back with Darth Paan and later Gesen and Veshta granted me a lot of insight into countermeasures against such a devastating weapon. As Sundar went for a double downward strike, I focused all my barrier into my hands and grabbed the lightsaber blades, locking them in a hold. A whistle escaped the Sith Lord before we started the strength contest, one I was clearly losing: despite maintaining my physical strength and working out every morning and evening, I wasn't a frontline fighter and Sundar clearly had spent much more time on the field. The lightsabers were slowly but inevitably pushing towards my neck and shoulders, crimson blades seething against my shielded hands. I had mere seconds before death would take me…

A scream behind Sundar momentarily startled us both. Kory, having had recovered from crashing face-first into the monument was now advancing on Sundar, screaming bloody murder. Sundar attempted to wrestle his lightsabers back but I was not giving in, providing Kory with an opportunity to strike at the Sith Lord. Sundar then extinguished his blades and quickly turned towards Kory, reigniting the lightsabers, one striking at the redhead while the other headed towards me. Barely blocking the attack on time, I quickly moved up the stairs and started channelling the Force towards Kory, reinforcing her barrier as she started trading blows with Sundar. Sith Lord was proving to be a much better swordsman but it didn't matter anymore: between me and Kory, her barrier was not budging under Sundar's onslaught, allowing Kory to completely forgo defence and press the attack. Sundar, on the other hand, didn't seem to have a barrier, most likely more than compensating for its lack with incredible offensive skills. However, in this situation his offense wasn't helping him, forcing the Sith Lord to give ground, defending rather than attacking. His lightsabers were much more powerful than Kory's vibroblades but whereas he couldn't muster enough time to either pierce the barrier or shatter the blades, Kory had all the time in the world. Victory was ours, or so I thought.

Sundar pushed Kory away and jumped up the stairs, his back towards me, lightsabers striking towards my body. He was trying to attack me! I stopped reinforcing Kory and raised my barrier, but instead of striking at me, Sundar's form glowed red as the Sith charged towards Kory. Damn it, he wanted me to stop helping her to land a strike! Kory raised her blades to block but Sundar's charge, empowered through his Force power, slammed into the redhead like a tidal wave. One vibroblade was shattered upon impact and Kory was flung into the monument, slamming into it and causing the structure to shudder. Sundar advanced to wards Kory, intending to finish the job against the dazed girl.

A guttural roar escaped me as I channelled Lightning into Sundar's back, the Sith Lord spinning around and blocking the onslaught with his lightsabers at the last moment. My single bolt couldn't break past his block but at least his attention was now completely on me. Rage and anger were coursing through me, amplifying the attack, but I needed a plan to win the battle now, and win it quick. Kory was most likely in no shape to fight and I couldn't last long myself, especially against a clearly superior opponent.

"First you negate my mind control, then hold my lightsabers like its nothing and now you shoot lightning I barely can hold back! Just who the hell are you, acolyte?!"

"The one that will end your life, Sundar!"

"Big claim from a future corpse!"

I was slowly descending the stairs and advancing on Sundar, intending to cut the distance for whatever manoeuvre I would come up with. My healing and barrier would only prolong the fight, not win it, lightning wasn't going to work if he is focused on it so intently… wait a moment, shockwave! The blast would no doubt hurt Kory, I needed Sundar to get closer towards me. I pretended to look weak and frightened, not a huge feat considering my exhaustion that was creeping in by the second, and started weakening my Force Lightning, charging up Overload behind my back. My bet was that Sundar himself was too tired to sense my true intentions and Force build-up behind my back.

The gamble worked: Sundar, a big smile now on his face, started slowly advancing towards me, lightsabers glowing with the Force as he started preparing a lethal attack himself, not too dissimilar from the blow he dealt to the k'lor'slug. Having one of my hands seemingly drop down, only holding the Sith Lord with one hand, I noticed Kory slowly get back up, looking bruised but alive. No, I couldn't give her away to Sundar, I needed to maintain the pretence. On his end, Sundar was too gleeful at the sight of his opponent succumbing to his assault, now mere meters away from me.

"So much bravado, and look at you now! Any last words before I cut you into ribbons and then turn your little girlfriend into paste?"

"Oh, my words might just sweep you off your feet!"

Sundar was now almost within arm's reach from me; deciding it was now or never, I thrusted out my free hand, Overload slamming into the Sith in front of me. The Force-empowered shockwave ripped off the Force that clang to the lightsabers and Sundar himself was thrown back. He managed to keep his footing but his arms were now flailing in the air. Dashing towards him and pulling the vibroknife out of my boot, I plunged the blade into Sundar's left hand and drew the blade upwards, ripping through flesh and muscle, intending to disarm the Sith one lightsaber at a time. Sundar cried in pain and dropped the lightsaber, blood pouring from the wound. Momentarily blooded by the stream of red liquid, I went to wipe the face, only to see Sundar striking at me with the lightsaber in his other hand. I attempted to hold off the attack, but the Sith was now fuelled by pain anger beyond imagining. Foam was collecting at the edges of his mouth, eyes glaring at me like the twin suns of Tatooine. His hand was pushing against me, his last lightsaber closing in on my head. I tried zapping him with my knife hand, but adrenalin, pain and emotions fuelling the Force made Sundar disregard the assault. Damn it, why didn't I go for his neck?!

The next moment, I was staring at the tip of a vibroblade in front of my face, close enough for me to touch the tip with my lips… what just happened? I focused on the surroundings more. Sundar's throat was pierced by Kory's vibroblade, redhead herself stepping around Sundar, panting heavily. As blood started gushing out of the wound, Sundar's strength waned. I pushed the man off me and stepped backwards. Sundar's face was a mix of confusion and sorrow; his lips moved, trying to say something, but the broken windpipe prevented any words from coming out. Almost in a haze he turned around and, upon finding Kory, started moving towards her. On her end, the now incredibly pale Kory tried stumbling away from Sundar. Deciding to end this quickly for the Sith, I Pulled his first lightsaber from the ground, ignited the blade and cut off his still working arm, turning the blade around and thrusting it into Sundar's back, aiming towards the chest area. The momentum of the attack brought my face close to Sundar's, I could see tears well up in his eyes. I turned off the lightsaber and supported the man as he slowly collapsed on the ground. Sundar was staring at me, trying to move his remaining arm in my direction. Then, his eyes glazed and he stopped moving, red energy rising from his body.

I felt like vomiting at this point, the memory of my Trial of Blood coming back. No, this man betrayed the Empire, brainwashed the soldiers! But still, I could have reasoned with him once he was defeated… no, he was too strong, or perhaps I was too weak? I collapsed on the ground next to the Lord's corpse, trying to compose myself, some shattering noise happening besides me. I felt someone falling down next to me, putting me in a hug… Kory! She was slowly mustering up a healing technique, the waves of rejuvenating energy washing over me. Slowly returning the embrace, we lay on the ground for a while. I didn't know how much time has passed before I fully regained my senses, hearing quiet sobbing next to me.

"Have you ever killed anyone before, Kory?"

"…no. Well, beasts and droids, yes, but no people".

"Take your time, let it all out. I am with you".

Pulling the woman tighter into the hug I started rubbing my hand against her back, dropping the lightsaber I was still holding to the ground. She was sobbing into my shoulder but I could her through the Force, her stress and anguish gradually fading away… she must have charged Sundar to protect me both times, and once she landed a killing blow, her gentle nature went into a shock at the grisly sight. Carefully, so as not to disturb Kory, I glanced around the room. I remembered something rumbling and snapping… the monument! The structure was now broken, revealing a tablet, runes all across it. I remembered both the instructions from Ephran Zell and Sundar's words: once enough blood is spilled next to the monument, it would open and reveal Tulak Hord's secrets. Sundar's body emitted some sort of red mist once he died, similar to that large k'lor'slug… his death must have been enough to open the monument. What tragic irony, he went to such lengths to research the secrets of Tulak Hord, only to die and reveal them post mortum. Sensing that Kory was now calm, I reached with my hand towards Sundar's face and closed the man's eyes.

Slowly getting up, I examined Kory. She had a few bruises and was limping a bit, most likely the result of crashing into the monument the second time. One of her blades was shattered into tiny pieces and was lying next to the monument, the other was plunged deep into Sundar's throat… she definitely needed new weapons, maybe the Academy had a few spare blades? Or maybe… I collected both of Sundar's lightsabers and handed them both to Kory.

"Wha-what? You must be joking!"

"You need new weapons to replace the broken ones. They are yours".

"But I wasn't the one that killed him! You deserve them mo-"

"Kory, without you I would be dead at least twice. You deserve these weapons, truly".

With a bit of a hesitation, Kory took the hilts and ignited the crimson blades. Childish grin broke on her face as she started twirling the swords around. I couldn't help but admire her resolve: despite being knocked into the monument she still rushed to my protection! Despite being horrified at Sundar's gory death, she still went to comfort me… weak, pathetic rodent Harkun called her, that arrogant fool! Kory has extinguished her lightsaber, attached them to her belt and gave me a running hug, last wisps of stress washing away. Scanning the tablet from the Red Engine, we left the room.

The next several minutes were spent at searching the Machine Vault for another tablet for Harkun and then ascending up the stairs. Upon moving up, I could feel something was off. Emerging from the Machine Vault into the open I saw a small group of soldiers and acolytes standing next to the entrance to the Archives.

"What's going on here?"

"Someone powerful is hiding inside! We've sent a small group but all we heard are screams!"

Dashing past the Imperials into the tomb, Kory trying her best to keep up. I almost immediately heard faint screams ahead and sped further down the Archives. Several bodies were lying on the ground next to an opening where a large tablet stood. I reached out to them, only to find traces of life in one, Savas. Several rocks were around the corpses, a few of them impaled right through the armour… what could have caused it? I could Push and Pull objects around with relative ease but usually they weren't that fast or lethal to kill by themselves. I certainly couldn't accomplish this feat with a small rock.

Up ahead I saw a female acolyte crawling with her back towards me. Apprentice Peyterra! She looked bloodied, arms outstretched in front of her, begging someone to spare her life. Stepping into my line of sight was a hooded figure, twirling one hand as a big rock was floating next to them. Then, the figure made a throwing motion towards Peyterra, sending the stone towards the prone woman. The rock was accelerating and twisting in the air, no doubt ripping the girl in half upon impact. Mustering whatever little Force I had left, I attempted to Push the rock aside. It worked, but only partially, scratching Peyterra's face as it slammed into the ground next to the apprentice. Getting her attention and ordering her to leave the tomb, I sent a small healing charge at Peyterra and stood between her and the assailant. The latter, to my surprise, stopped and slowly raised the hands in the air, faint smile under the hood. Hearing Kory's voice and footsteps behind me, I frantically weighed my chances.

Whoever this person was, they clearly had great prowess in the Force, evident through the power I have never witnessed. I was exhausted by the fight with Sundar and while physically I was more than fine, my inner Force felt absolutely drained. It took me a colossal effort to deflect that boulder and heal Peyterra, and this battle would clearly be decided by one's prowess in the Force. Kory caught up to me, looking rather hurt herself. No, two of us had no chance against this enemy, we needed to get out, fast. Kory started moving towards the tablet, the figure seemingly following her movements with the head. As I went to stand inbetween the two, the figure once again raised hands in the air and slowly lowered the hood. I saw a man, maybe in his thirties, rather featureless face staring at me, smiling.

"Acolyte, you need not worry about your companion. I was very much looking forward to our meeting, though I wish it were under entirely different circumstances".

"You are the Hooded One".

"Please don't call me that, one such as yourself deserves to know my name. I am Vald Inosp, a former Jedi who came to this nexus of power to gather mighty Force artifacts".

"What exactly is a Jedi?"

"You… don't know? How peculiar, I thought everyone in the Galaxy knows by now! Jedi, like Sith, are practitioners of the Force, though while you study the Dark Side, we are followers of the Light Side".

"Light Side? Are Sith evil then?"

"It depends entirely on who you ask, acolyte. To help you understand the important difference, Jedi master their power through years and years of training, honing their skills to perfection. Sith, on the other hand, channel their power through their emotions; this allows you to master and control the Force much faster and in a rather destructive fashion, but you usually are weaker than your average Jedi and directly channelling the Force through your body doesn't help you live a long and healthy life either. Not to say that Sith are incapable of learning, just that you have a rather different approach to the Force… I must say, I am rather surprised you didn't know of the Jedi. I have initially attributed your set of skills to secretly following Jedi doctrine".

"You know who I am?"

"Of course! Disregarding the slaves who would sneak out of the tomb through the hidden tunnels before those were collapsed by that Force outburst, news of your exploits travel far and wide! Not to mention, you are the reason we have lost our steady supply of acolytes, they now see you as the means to change the ways of the Empire, not me. I am almost certain I know the answer, but let me ask you – join my cause".

"I serve the Empire, and your rebellion is no more".

"You, serve the Empire? Please, your set of skills will be invaluable to the Republic and myself! The Empire terrorises our worlds, the Empire is the oppressor and we need to defend ourselves from it!"

"And yet here stands an agent of the Republic, deep in the Empire territory, sabotaging learning process at the Sith Academy. Forgive me my scepticism, but I don't see someone who needs protection".

"Think of all the innocents who suffer under the Empire's rule then, how many were enslaved during the war!"

"As a former slave, I know exactly what atrocities were committed by the Empire. However, joining another faction will not help those that still suffer under the Empire's rule. Even if we pretend for the moment both Empire and Republic aren't both part of the conflict, committing atrocities against each other in equal measure, I would help the Empire and its citizens much more while being part of it… besides, you are not exactly a charitable man, Jedi Vald Inosp. You said it yourself, you are here to gather powerful artefacts. Based on what I've seen so far of Korriban, people like you would use and abuse slaves and those who would follow, only to dispose of or abandon them later. Lord Sundar was your ally and he was perfectly fine holding his men under mind control; if you were fine with that, then you are most likely fine with your subordinates suffering for your own gain. Am I correct in my assumption, Vald Inosp?"

"…you are too smart for your own good, acolyte. But you are correct, the rebels were a decoy. I am almost finished uncovering the artefacts, and will leave this planet soon after. The slaves and acolytes would have caused a good distraction to cover my escape. I suppose I shall find other means of travel after dealing with you. A shame really, I was hoping to either have you join my cause or battle you at your full power. But alas, sacrifices must be made for success".

"If you wish for a duel, I can wait here and fight you once I have recovered. If you win, I will make sure you get a free pass from here, you will have my word. I only ask you let me make sure former rebels are treated fairly".

"A generous offer and under different circumstances I would have agreed. However, no Sith Lord or Darth would allow my escape and my guarantee in the shape of the rebels is now gone. No, acolyte, as much I admire you and it pains me to end your life in such a fashion, it must be done. But I am not without mercy and the girl can leave-"

I felt uneasy throughout the entire conversation. Vald Inosp was calm and polite, cheerful even, despite having lost his whole rebellion. However, I didn't even need to waste time and energy on Sensing him though the Force; it was abundantly clear that the Jedi was enraged, his calm very much resembling a desert right before a Tusken ambush: too quiet, too calm, too good to be true. As he was making the proposition, me thinking intently whether or not he would be earnest, Kory took the simple and direct approach of charging Vald Inosp, the Jedi blocking her assault with his crimson lightsaber. Surprisingly enough, she no longer was limping! Kory must have healed herself during my conversation with Vald Inosp. Again, I couldn't help but admire her ingenuity and willpower. Still staring at me, Vald's smile slowly disappeared as the Jedi was now ready for a fight.

"… but I suppose she'd rather die with you!"

"Kory, get behind him!"

As the redhead started circling Jedi around, I gathered whatever little Force I had left within me and shot a bolt of lightning. Even as it left my hand, I was ashamed at the sight, the electric charge being much thinner than even the first time I learned to use the technique. Vald Inosp Pushed Kory away from him and, turning towards me, made a circular motion with his hand. The wind around me started rapidly picking, turning and twisting, pulling me around.

"Apologies, acolyte, but it appears you are out of this battle. Only way to break out of this whirlwind is to be damaged through the Force, and your friend will be too preoccupied to help you I am afraid".

I could barely hear Vald as the Jedi started advancing on Kory, leaving me spinning in one place. Damn it, I needed to get out of this whirlwind fast. Only Force damage could stop it, Kory wasn't able to help me… wait a minute. My hands were clutched tight to my body due to the pressure but I was strong enough to slowly push one outward, just enough to create distance. Then, channelling the remaining Force I could still call upon, I shot lightning into my body. Nothing happened. Rage started overtaking, I needed to break free right now! Then, tiny sparks starting dancing around my hand, pushed back by the whirlwind. Now that, that I could work with! Letting the pressure of the technique do its job, I let my hand slam back into by body, shocking my thigh. As electricity jolted around my leg, bits of it started crashing into the whirlwind, the stream of air coming to a halt. Falling to the ground and massaging the sore spot, I quickly scanned the battlefield.

Kory was slowly getting decimated. Multiple burnt marks were all across her body. Her lightsabers were now back on her belt and she was Pushing various debris into Vald Inosp. The latter was lazily deflecting them and was rotating them around his head, occasionally tossing them back at the redhead. He was toying with her, stretching her suffering before inevitable demise.

"Foolish girl, your Force prowess is nothing compared to mine! I can sense your every attack through the Force, nothing you can do will-"

I was quietly yet quickly crouching towards Vald Inosp, hiding behind his back. Picking up a fist-sized remnant of Sith architecture from the floor, I flung it at the Jedi's head, the rock slamming with a loud crack. Having left the hood off his head, Vald was guaranteed to receive a full experience from a couple kilos of stone colliding with his skull. As the Jedi loudly groaned and clutched his head with his free hand, floating debris falling to the ground, blood visible under his fingers, I charged the man.

"Kory, run away!"

"I am not leaving you!"

"Get out of here, now!"

Closing in, I struck at Vald's lightsaber hand, disarming the Jedi. Headbutting the bastard and pinning him against the wall, I started striking all across his body – jab to the ribs, slam into the head, quick strike at the throat… I could no longer use my Force techniques, but my life on the farm and as a slave yet again was proving nothing could ever beat the good-old hand-to-hand combat. And while my anger at the arrogant bastard couldn't fuel my barrier or lightning, it was proving to be good enough of a motivator to turn the man in front of into minced meat.

To his credit, Vald Inosp was taking my assault very well. His small and lithe figure hid his well-built form, his seemingly light robes were either padded or reinforced from the inside, absorbing a lot of my attacks. He was very much in pain and couldn't counterattack but he was slowly regaining composure, bringing up his arms to his head and doing his best to defend himself. As I went to shove his head into the wall, causing even more pain to his already heavily bruised head, Vald screamed and Pushed at me, both hands outstretched. I was flung away from him, though not before smashing his head against the wall and seeing the Jedi fall to the floor. Quickly composing myself in the air and bracing for impact, I rolled against the floor. Fortunately, robe Lord Renning provided was proving quite effective at absorbing the damage. I scrambled to my legs, judging the situation; my enemy was still powerful in the Force and has now gained distance on me, granting him an enormous advantage. He was now angry and in pain and would go for the kill, now was a good time to retreat, collapse the tomb entry and return later to finish him off for good.

As I started running away from the room, seeing Kory waiting for me, now looking rather relieved despite her injuries, a wave of pain rolled over me. It felt as if every bone, every muscle in my body was put on a hydraulic press… who, what, how? I managed to look back into the room and saw Vald, glowing red with the Force, making crushing gestures with both hands. I tried to reach for the dagger on my belt to fling it, but the pain was too much. Suddenly, I was yanked away from the Jedi, landing next to heavily panting Kory. As soon as I left Vald's line of sight, the pain seized. Forcing myself up on my legs, me and Kory started running out of the Archives. A scream and sound of lightning crushing into walls before us, before I started hearing footsteps behind. Vald was giving chase! As we passed by a turn, bright light positioned at the wall, I turned around, took my knife and aimed it at the corner. Vald's shadow, amplified by the light, appeared on the floor soon after. The moment I saw his lightsaber poke around the corner, I flung my dagger, aiming at approximately his body and sped up. Judging by the scream of pain I hit my mark. I was finally able to see the sky from the archway, Tynes and several troops looking down.

"My lord, good to see you-"

"Collapse the entrance to the Archives, now!"

"What?"

"Do it!"

Soldiers started firing off into the hallway, most likely having had noticed the enemy. Tynes, looking confused but obeying nonetheless, started tossing grenades at the archway entrance. Kory, Peyterra and an acolyte I didn't know the name of were levitating rock and debris from around the entrance and piling them up. Tynes, shouted for us to move away from the blast radius and we started dashing through the area towards the tunnels to the Antechamber, soldiers providing covering fire. For the next couple of minutes, we just ran. At some point I lifted Kory and carried her, the girl's wounds preventing her from moving quickly by herself. Then, we all fell at the entrance to Tulak Hord's tomb.


End file.
